The main priority for the Indiana Pacers this summer is to keep Pascal Siakam on the team. The one-time NBA All-Star will be an unrestricted free agent on June 30, and he is eligible for a five-year, $245 million extension.
According to Shams Charania from The Athletic, the team is preparing to offer him a max contract since he had a great first season with the Indiana Pacers, who traded for him in exchange for Bruce Brown, Jordan Nwora, Kira Lewis Jr., and three first-round picks to the Toronto Raptors last January.
“The heavy lifting on the Pascal Siakam front has been done on both sides. Pascal Siakam, the Raptors, couldn’t agree to an extension. He gets traded and the Pacers, for their part, give up three first-round drop picks to go get him,” said Charania via FanDuel TV’s Run It Back.
“They didn’t just trade those picks to potentially just have a crack at keeping him. They understand it’s a maximum level contract commitment that you’re going to have with Pascal Siakam,” he added.
Tyrese Haliburton and Rick Carlisle want Pascal Siakam back to the Indiana Pacers
Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle and point guard Tyrese Haliburton also batted for the 30-year-old forward in the exit interviews.
“You trade for a guy, he has a good experience, but you gotta let him know how important he is,” Carlisle said about Siakam. “We’ve been doing it all along, really, but today is more of a ‘Hey, you’re our guy.'”
“I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure Pascal Siakam is in a Pacer uniform next year. And I’m excited to begin that recruiting process, I guess, but just to have him as my teammate for the foreseeable future. Hopefully for the rest of his career,” Haliburton said.
Pascal Siakam has been one of the best players for the Indiana Pacers this year, averaging 21.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists on 54.9 percent shooting in 41 regular-season games.