NBA Rumors: Hawks Could Get Pascal Siakam For John Collins, Kevin Huerter & Draft Picks
As proposed in a recent scenario from NBA Analysis Network, the Atlanta Hawks could make another significant move ahead of the March trade deadline by acquiring Pascal Siakam from the Toronto Raptors for a package centered on promising big man John Collins.
As explained by the publication on Wednesday, the Hawks already did a lot to improve their roster during the offseason, landing players such as Danilo Gallinari and Rajon Rondo and giving Collins and third-year point guard Trae Young a considerably better supporting cast. However, the outlet also speculated that Atlanta could also “flip” one of these two up-and-coming stars for someone more skilled, with Collins being a far more likely candidate due to the fact he recently turned down a long-term contract extension.
In its recommended deal, NBA Analysis Network suggested that the Hawks could offer Collins, reserve wingman Kevin Huerter, and one first-round pick each from the 2021, 2023, and 2025 drafts in exchange for Siakam. This theoretical move, as speculated, could give Atlanta a big man with championship experience, as well as a potential upgrade over Collins at the power forward position.
“Pascal Siakam has taken huge strides as a player over the last two NBA seasons. He is a player who has been on winning teams and could bring that pedigree to the Hawks. The experience could come in handy down the stretch. He has played with elite guards with the Raptors and knows how to interact with them on the perimeter.”
All in all, the site predicted that the swap could improve Atlanta’s chances of not just qualifying for a postseason spot but also making an impact in the playoffs as well.
After winning the Most Improved Player Award for the 2018-19 campaign, Siakam further broke out in 2019-20, averaging 22.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.5 assists and shooting 45.3 percent from the field and 35.9 percent from three-point range, per Basketball-Reference. However, he has gotten off to a bit of a slow start in 2020-21, with averages of 18.7 points and a 39.3 percent field-goal shooting clip in the first three games of the new season.
Talking about how the hypothetical deal could help the Raptors, the publication noted that Collins could immediately replace Siakam at the four spot as the organization continues building around guard Fred VanVleet. While Collins is coming off a double-double season with the Hawks, Huerter was also mentioned as a possible contributor due to his ability to score from long range, while the future first-round selections were described as potentially too good for Toronto to refuse.
