NBA Rumors: Pistons Could Acquire Pascal Siakam For Jerami Grant, Derrick Rose & Sekou Doumbouya
While it may not be surprising that the rebuilding Detroit Pistons are still among the NBA’s worst teams with a 5-15 win-loss record, the Toronto Raptors have shocked many fans by getting off to a 7-12 start that has them tied with the Miami Heat for 12th in the Eastern Conference. As suggested in a recently published trade idea, both teams could potentially improve their fortunes through a deal that would send forward Pascal Siakam to Detroit in exchange for three of the Pistons’ key rotation players — point guard Derrick Rose and forwards Jerami Grant and Sekou Doumbouya.
According to NBA Analysis Network, multiple Raptors have seen their name mentioned in trade rumors and scenarios amid the team’s current struggles. Ahead of the 2020-21 campaign, the organization re-signed Fred VanVleet to a long-term contract as they committed to building around him and Siakam as the franchise’s two new centerpieces. The Pistons, meanwhile, made several big moves in the offseason as well, using their seventh overall selection in last year’s draft on their point guard of the future (Killian Hayes) and substantially upgrading their frontcourt by signing Grant and Mason Plumlee via free agency.
With both teams still in the bottom third of the Eastern Conference, the publication recommended the aforementioned deal, which might benefit Detroit by giving them a young big man who could help speed up the rebuilding process. Despite getting off to a slower start than expected, Siakam is still among the Raptors’ leading contributors, with averages of 18.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists, and a 44.9 percent shooting clip from the field, according to his Basketball-Reference page. He is, however, still having a hard time connecting from beyond the arc, as he has converted on just 25 percent of his 4.3 attempts per game from three-point range.
As for the Raptors, NBA Analysis Network suggested that the 2019 champions might be better off shaking things up in one way or another due to their poorer-than-expected start to the 2020-21 season. Grant — who is averaging a career-best 23.8 points along with 6.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, per Basketball-Reference — could theoretically replace much of Siakam’s contributions, while Rose could either continue thriving as the first guard off the bench or replace Kyle Lowry in the starting lineup, assuming the latter is traded.
Although he isn’t getting much playing time due to the emergence of Grant and the solid play of rookie Isaiah Stewart, Doumbouya is only in his second season in the league and could also play an important off-the-bench role for the Raptors, assuming the hypothetical deal becomes a reality.
