Kings land Raptors forward in blockbuster proposal
The NBA trade season kicked off in a major way to end 2023 with a bang. The New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors pulled off an unexpected deal that saw OG Anunoby land in the Big Apple and Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett in The 6. This wasn’t a swap of seconds for a third guard; this was a major deal with shockwaves that will be felt throughout the league.
The Knicks are now going to search for another top-tier scorer, and the Raptors appear to be open for business. Trading for two established young players indicates that Toronto is neither tearing it down nor tricking itself into thinking it can contend this year or next. They want to stay moderately competitive while building a team to win as Scottie Barnes and now Quickley mature into their primes over the next few seasons.
That likely means that Pascal Siakam will soon be on the move. The 29-year-old forward will be a free agent this summer and will either walk away from the Raptors for nothing or be re-signed to a large deal that ties up Toronto’s flexibility on a team that doesn’t match his timeline. It makes sense to trade Siakam now, and it appears that the market for him is already established.
In the immediate aftermath of the Anunoby deal, Mike Scotto of HoopsHype was the first to report that the Sacramento Kings were among those teams still interested in trading for Pascal Siakam. They are joined by the Indiana Pacers and Atlanta Hawks, two other teams in need of an upgrade at power forward.
What would it look like for the Kings to trade for the two-time All-NBA forward? Let’s build a fair trade package and see what both sides would think about it.
