Is Pascal Siakam a Serious Contender For NBA MVP Next Season?
For Toronto Raptors fans, Pascal Siakam is a player whose name reverberates from the stands. The Cameroonian power-forward has been an integral part of Nick Nurse’s roster since the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.
It was in the team’s championship-winning year that Siakam moved up into a starting position, beginning on the court for 79 of his 80 regular season games, and for all 24 during those glorious playoffs.
Following that performance, Spicy P, as he’s affectionately known, has made himself the Raptors’ biggest asset. Because of this, some are beginning to suggest that the 6’ft 8”in basketball machine could be a contender in next year’s NBA MVP betting, and the Bodog sportsbook can’t help but nod sagely in agreement.
Let’s take a look at Siakam’s chances of being basketball’s Most Valuable Player.
Pascal Siakam’s 2021-22 Season
The 2021-22 season was a great one for Siakam, who led the team in most key metrics, including points per game, rebounds per game, and minutes on the court. For stats that didn’t place him in the top spot, he was usually hot on the heels of whoever took the lead.
What’s perhaps more impressive is that Spicy P’s numbers could have been higher had he not endured a rocky start to the season. He began the year recovering from shoulder surgery following a notable absence from the roster for a good portion of 2020-21. And while Siakam certainly made an effort, he was struggling to perform at the level we’ve grown to expect from him.
Despite that, he turned it around and set personal bests in minutes per game, rebounds per game, assists per game, and steals per game in the regular season. He then continued his hot streak into the playoffs, averaging 43.3 minutes on the court across the six matches the Raptors played and setting new personal bests for the playoffs.
During the playoff games against the Philadelphia 76ers, Spicy P was working flat-out. In Game 1, he racked up 24 of the 111 points the Raptors got on the board, a few days later, in Game 4 he went on to post a personal best of 34 points to help the Canadian side win 110-102 and keep their hopes of remaining in the playoffs alive.
At stages, Siakam seemed like a one-man army on the court. He fought valiantly without the support of Fred VanVleet for key playoff games after the American injured his hip flexor. Nick Nurse backed up his star player saying that “his teammates just weren’t able to help him out”, leading to a deficit of shots and good plays.
Realising just how vital Spicy P was on the court, the 76ers began to assign two players to him to keep him from making plays and getting on charges. With one hand already tied behind his back, this approach from Philadelphia hampered Siakam even more.
Siakam For MVP in 2023
Having the opposition switch its tactics to neutralise the threat posed to them is a pretty big compliment to receive, and one that is certainly a sign that Siakam could be MVP.
However, while Spicy P is the star that shines brightly over Toronto, he’s only one of many twinkling lights in the NBA galaxy.
Early MVP odds in the NBA futures markets don’t have Spicy P as a top contender – in fact, the list looks very similar to this season’s top 10.
If the Cameroonian wants a shot at the highest accolade awarded to an individual in basketball, he’ll need to beat the likes of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, and Joel Embiid.
As of mid-May, the favourite to win next season is Antetokounmpo. He’s already won MVP on two previous occasions, and made it into the list of finalists for 2021-22. His stats aren’t a million miles from Siakam’s, though, so it’s feasible that Pascal could make the step up next season now his shoulder injury is behind him.
Raptors Hopes For Next Season
We won’t sugarcoat it: the Raptors had a dismal 2020-21 season. The Canadian side finished 12th in the Eastern Conference with a 27-45 record, but in their defence, there were some good reasons for the lapse. Firstly, they spent most of the season away from home due to border restrictions, dismantling the team’s home-side advantage.
Siakam was also notably absent for around a third of the season due to injury, leaving the Raptors with a large void and no one to fill it.
2021-22 didn’t start much better, with the Raptors struggling in early games. Things improved dramatically as the season progressed and as Spicy P returned to form. Had he been at that level for the entire regular season, it is very possible that the Raptors could have finished much higher than 5th place.
Even so, 5th is a big step up on 2020-21 – enough to secure a playoff spot.
However, what we’ve learned from the last two seasons is that the Raptors are lacking depth. Just a couple of key absences are enough to see the team performing sub-optimally.
The injuries that plagued the team this season should be resolved come the start of 2022/23, so we could see a rejuvenated Raptors with the talent required to return to the top of the NBA and win the championship, just as it did back in 2019.
2022/23 will also be the first time in several years when the team will spend the entire season playing at the Scotiabank Arena rather than having to crash on another city’s sofa south of the border.
If all these factors can come together, then it could be enough for the Raptors to have another shot at the NBA Championship.
There is no doubt that Pascal Siakam is the best baller north of the border. His contribution to the Raptors is second-to-none, and he just keeps getting better. If he can make a big step up next season, he and Toronto could both be in for a good year. If you think Spicy P has what it takes to make that stride forward, then now is the time to lock in his NBA MVP Odds at Bodog.
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