Masai Ujiri might as well take Mark Cuban’s spot on Shark Tank next season because he keeps making unbelievable deals. While there are still details being finalized, the bones of the trade are being widely reported. Let’s dive into the details of the Pascal Siakam trade and determine how much, if at all, this deal will impact NBA Fantasy Basketball.
Pascal Siakam Trade Summary
Indiana Pacers Get:
Pascal Siakam, NOP 2nd Round Pick
Toronto Raptors Get:
Bruce Brown, Jordan Nwora, Kira Lewis Jr., 3 1st round picks
New Orleans Pelicans Get:
Nothing concrete reported yet
Pascal Siakam’s Fantasy Stock
To be honest, I’ve never been a huge Siakam fan in real life or fantasy basketball. Looking at his numbers, he’s averaging his lowest PPG since 2020 (21.4 PPG), his lowest assists since 2020 (4.5 Ast), and his lowest rebounds since 2017 (4.5 Reb). On top of that, the 29-year-old is averaging his fewest minutes per game since 2017. He should be in the prime of his career, averaging close to career highs in all the aforementioned categories, but instead, he seems to be declining. To make matters worse, his 25% usage rate is his lowest since 2018. Now, he’ll be going to play for a team whose best player is a point guard with a 26% usage rate. Siakam’s assists will go down, and so will his rebounds playing next to Myles Turner, and his points per game could go either way. He could be spoonfed buckets now that he’s playing with a better point guard, or he could have his scoring decline as a result of being the third/fourth option on his new team. At the end of the day, this is a worse situation if you’re a Siakam fantasy owner.
Bruce Brown’s Fantasy Stock
The 27-year-old is one of my favorite players to watch. When coaches talk about wanting their players to do the dirty work, they’re talking about wanting Bruce Brown. He plays defense, he takes charges, he dives for loose balls, and I dare you to leave him open. He’ll make you pay. He’s cut from the same cloth as Patrick Beverley if you ask me. But you didn’t. You want to know if Brown should still be in your lineups, and he should. He was averaging 12/5/4 on 30 minutes per game, and a 17% usage rate. Those numbers should stay relatively in line. I can’t imagine his usage rate changes, with Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett. His rebounds and assists are a function of his work rate, and that won’t change. He only takes ten shots per game, and as the third/fourth option on the Raptors now, that seems about right. Keep Bruce Brown.
Bottom Line: Siakam stock is DOWN. Brown stock flat. Role players involved in trade remain largely immaterial in NBA fantasy.