Pascal Siakam was rumored to be one of the Golden State Warriors‘ top trade targets ahead of the Feb. 8 trade deadline. However, he was recently traded to the Indiana Pacers in a three-team deal that sent Bruce Brown, Jordan Nwora, Kira Lewis Jr. and three first-round picks to the Toronto Raptors.
In the final year of his contract, Siakam had some control over where he would be traded. He will become an unrestricted free agent in the summer, so he could simply inform teams that he wouldn’t re-sign with them at the end of the season. According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, who was speaking on a recent episode of “The Athletic NBA Show,” Siakam didn’t have much interest in teaming with Steph Curry in the Bay Area.
“The Warriors were interested. I don’t think he (Siakam) was excited about anything past this season with them.”
It wasn’t too long ago that it was unthinkable for a player to decline the opportunity to head to Golden State and contend for championships. Siakam’s decision to snub Steve Kerr‘s team is another indicator of the franchise’s struggle to build the team and remain competitive at the highest level.
Fortunately for the Warriors, there are still a few weeks for them to explore potential trades and make a decision on how they want to proceed with the remainder of the season.
