Sports

Siakam to Indiana and What it Means For the League

Ari Shemesh, Reporter

February 2, 2024

CLUTCHPOINTS

Despite what some may consider a boring start to the season in the NBA, the excitement has quickly ramped up in recent weeks. There have been many close matchups between contending teams, and just in the last two weeks, four players have scored more than 60 points in their games. Nearly two weeks ago, one of the biggest trades this season was finalized, between the Toronto Raptors, Indiana Pacers, and the New Orleans Pelicans.

This year, the Pacers have continued to improve and have consistently sat around the six seed in the Eastern Conference. Their record currently sits at 27-20, and Tyrese Haliburton has played like an all-star all year. The Raptors, on the other hand, have not had the same success. Their record is 16-30, and they are currently the 12 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Although the Pelicans did have a small influence on this trade, the bulk of the picks and players came from the Raptors and the Pacers. However, the Pelicans still gave up Kira Lewis to the Raptors and a future second round pick to the Pacers, in order to remain under the luxury tax line.

The Raptors, despite giving up arguably their greatest player, Pascal Siakam received Bruce Brown, Jordan Nwora, two 2024 first-round picks, and a conditional 2026 first-round pick. The Pacers only received Siakam.

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This trade was good for both the Pacers and the Raptors. The Pacers have been a successful team all year, but without another all-star, Haliburton may not have been able to carry the load for the entire year. However their roster, after such an important trade, is still good. They kept Myles Turner, Benedict Mathurin, and Buddy Hield, all of whom have had a great impact on their success this season. Based on what the Pacers were willing to give up, it is clear that they are worried about succeeding for the next few years. On the other hand, the Raptors are seemingly rebuilding, as they also traded OG Anunoby recently. Additionally, their main focus this trade was receiving picks, which they got a good amount of.

Both teams got what they wanted in this trade. The Pacers received another star player to help them in the playoffs this season, and the Raptors received multiple first-round picks and managed to keep their current young stars for their rebuild.

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About the Contributor

Ari Shemesh, Reporter

Ari Shemesh, a senior at Adams, is excited to be back for his second year as a member of The Tower, and is eager to finally get back on the reporting grind. This year, Ari is hoping to spend more quality time with his friend David Nagy, amongst others (Isaac Shrader), while continuing to write for The Tower and learn valuable writing and reporting skills While his mornings are spent being an incredibly successful reporter, , Ari is starting his fourth year on the John Adams tennis team, where he dominates every afternoon. When given time to chill, Ari likes to play video games, watch movies, and watch or play sports with his family and friends. Furthermore, Ari enjoys spending his summers at an overnight camp, where this past summer break, he cleaned toilets and dishes for two months. Ari’s favorite classes in school are history and English; He is also a member of NHS, and spends time volunteering at the Jewish Federation of St. Joseph Valley. Ari is very excited to start his final year as a reporter and a student at Adams. His one request this year is that you guys help him finish the year with more reads than Isaac Shrader.