Pascal Siakam made his highly anticipated return to Toronto on Feb. 14.
Siakam was traded by the Raptors to the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 17.
It was a tough decision made by Masai Ujiri and the Raptors organization but it was one that was needed.
The Raptors were struggling and were in desperate need of a change of direction. Toronto decided to go into a rebuild around Scottie Barnes so that meant trading away a Raptors great to get it underway.
Siakam’s return to Toronto was a special night as expected. Before the game he received a well deserved ovation from the Raptors faithful:
An ovation that’s rivalled only by Lowry and DeRozan’s first games back in Toronto. A special and well deserved moment for Pascal Siakam. pic.twitter.com/deygecLt67
— Josh Lewenberg (@JLew1050) February 15, 2024
Siakam had a fantastic game against his former team. He had 23 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists and hit a dagger shot to give the Pacers the lead for good.
Siakam and Barnes went head-to-head in this matchup as Barnes responded with 29 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists.
After the game Siakam reflected on the emotional night and talked about his first game back going up against the Raptors via Adam Laskaris of Daily Hive Toronto:
“You want to say that you’re going to be okay, but it is hard. It is tough. This is a place that means a lot to me…this is a place that I wanted to be. But also I was just happy to be there.”
Raptors trading Siakam needed to happen
Siakam clearly wanted to remain a Raptor but given the current circumstances of the team it was not a good idea to keep him and re-sign him this summer to a max contract. The Raptors needed to prioritize player development and enter a youth movement.
Even though Siakam is no longer a Raptor, the fans still have a great deal of respect for what he contributed to the franchise over the years.
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