Siakam fills the Pacers' biggest hole in the East this time for a change

When an offensive team joins a large-sized striker with all-round offensive and defensive capabilities, will the effect be very explosive?

That's exactly what the Pacers want to see when they get Siakam.

The Pacers made a three-team trade with the Raptors and Pelicans, and the details are as follows-

The Pacers get: Siakam, a second-round pick (from the Pelicans).

The Raptors get: Bruce Brown, Jordan Walla and three first-round picks (all from the Pacers), Kayla Lewis Jr. (from the Pelicans).

The three first-round picks sent by the Pacers are the 2024 first-round pick (Pacers), the 2024 first-round pick (the worst pick among the Jazz, Rockets, Clippers, Thunder), and the 2026 first-round pick (Pacers, top-four protection).

The Pacers' delivery of the trade assets in Walla is a bundle sale of little significance, three first-round picks in 2026 is difficult to say what the quality will be, 2024 these two are likely to be the middle and late first-round round, the Pacers trade with the goal of improving the team's talent ceiling, and the cost of draft picks is not high.

Brown is the most important resource lost by the Pacers in the trade, Brown has averaged 12 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3 assists and 1.1 steals per game this season, he is a Swiss army knife, with rich functions, but Brown's comprehensive ability ceiling is high, and the height of 1.93 meters is obviously at a loss to the Eastern forward maniacs, if the Pacers just want to maintain the status quo, they can not move Brown, but if they want to raise the peak of offensive and defensive power, Brown has no problem as a trade chip, and the rotation time left by his departure can be used to cultivate young Nembhard.

The core of the trade is what the Pacers got out of it, Siakam is averaging 22.2 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game this season, shooting 52% from the field, and the data can directly give a positioning, Siakam is an efficient 20+ scorer per game.

Siakam has two other stats to keep an eye on, as he ranks 12th in the league in 12.8 points per game in the restricted area this season. Siakam has scored 1.26 points per game this season, ranking eighth among players averaging at least four possessions per game.

Attacking the basket and counterattacking, these are Siakam's strengths, the Pacers are the first team in the restricted area scoring per game this season, the second in the league in fast-break scoring, and the first is Siakam's old club Raptors.

Siakam isn't a perfect attacker, his three-point shooting is relatively weak, shooting 35 percent from three-point range this season, a career-high of just 36 percent, but the Pacers have no shortage of spot shooters, with six players shooting above 40 percent from three-point range.

Looking at the top three in the East, the Green Army has a double tanhua, the Bucks have Brother Alphabet and Lillard, the 76ers have Embiid and Maxey, and the dual-core is standard, while the Pacers were Haliburton single-core drivers before the trade, which is enough in the regular season, but it is not good to play high-end talent in the playoffs.

Siakam is not the type of big core with the ball, but he can change the opponent's defense by holding the ball, and has a certain dribble to develop offensive ability. The Pacers traded Siakam for Haliburton when he was sidelined with a leg injury, allowing him to run in with the team as a ball-handler until Haliburton returns.

Siakam's role is not limited to the offensive end, the Pacers are averaging 125.6 points per game this season, and the shooting rate of 50.8% is the first in the league, Siakam's arrival is to give the Pacers more options on the offensive end, and can deploy more offensive routines, his value to the team may be more important on the defensive end, and the 26th defensive efficiency in the league is a pain point for the Pacers.

The Pacers have changed the competition pattern in the East, Tatum, Brother Alphabet these "monsters" are absolutely unavoidable, the Pacers lacked full-sized wings before, Siakam is 2.03 meters tall and has an arm span of 2.21 meters, and he can go to the big players on the front line.

Looking at the championship teams of the past few years, the full-sized forward is an indispensable configuration for the championship, Wiggins in 2022 and Aaron Gordon in 2023 are both such types, Siakam fills this hole for the Pacers, allowing them to achieve offensive and defensive upgrades, and can compete with the top three in the East.

The main risk for the Pacers is that Siakam is in a contract year, which is the main reason the Raptors traded him, and the Raptors don't want to give Siakam a salary cap, but they don't want to wait until the summer to see him go for nothing. However, Brown's 2-year, 45 million contract is a premium, and the Pacers traded Brown to Siakam, at least on paper, and he will make a lot of money this season.

As for the offseason, wait until the offseason, if Siakam can help the Pacers reach the Final Four in the East, pose a strong threat to the Greens, Bucks and 76ers, and go further in the playoffs, a contract extension is not a problem.

The Pacers are currently sixth in the East, with only one win gap with the fourth Cavaliers in the East.