Pascal is on the brink of SUPERSTARDOM...

[PhilBlackson]

"Superstardom"....well we probably have a different definition for that.

Personally when I think of SUPERSTARS...I'm thinking Giannis, Steph, Jokic, Luka, KD etc. Guys who are in the running for face of the league and just on an all time legendary career. That's not what I think Pascal is or will be at. I think he's more so working at becoming a solidified "star" level player like Booker, Mitchell etc who are still trying to work up to that next level & he's entering that level at an older age.

That's not hate, that's GREAT at least having a guy who may be at that level but that's not what a superstar to me. A superstar may be hard to clearly define but it's a 1st option on a championship team, an all-time great, a player who you won't be able to talk about the history of the NBA without mentioning them...that's not what Pascal is or ever will be (imo). But it's not hating, it's insane a dude who took on bball late, played more than one year at a no name college, was thought to be drafted too high in the 1st round yet here he is all-NBA & battling to be in top 15 convo, it's an amazing accomplishment & story but he's still not quite battling for true superstardom and that's with all due respect to him & the insane amount of work he's put in.

[Basketball_Jones]

He’s in that Paul George territory to me. One of the best second guys in the league, sometimes looking superstar-ish

[Son Goku 25]

Love what he's doing, hope he ascends to a superstar level consistently and can improve his FT shooting cuz that will add another 4 points or so in a game.

[LoveMyRaps]

He’s in that Paul George territory to me. One of the best second guys in the league, sometimes looking superstar-ish

Paul George went from averaging 22ppg in 2018 to 28ppg in 2019. He also finished top 3 in MVP voting that year (I believe 2nd). That certainly qualified him as a superstar that season.
I feel like Pascal can do that as well...

[LoveMyRaps]

Love what he's doing, hope he ascends to a superstar level consistently and can improve his FT shooting cuz that will add another 4 points or so in a game.

His FT shooting was much better last night. If he can hit close to 80% of his free throws, that'll only increase the likelihood of him finishing the season averaging 28+ppg, which is borderline superstar stuff.

[alan_156]

He's doing all this without any sorta consistent shooting around him too

GTJ isn't a consistent shooter?

[Chandan]

"Superstardom"....well we probably have a different definition for that.

Personally when I think of SUPERSTARS...I'm thinking Giannis, Steph, Jokic, Luka, KD etc. Guys who are in the running for face of the league and just on an all time legendary career. That's not what I think Pascal is or will be at. I think he's more so working at becoming a solidified "star" level player like Booker, Mitchell etc who are still trying to work up to that next level & he's entering that level at an older age.

That's not hate, that's GREAT at least having a guy who may be at that level but that's not what a superstar to me. A superstar may be hard to clearly define but it's a 1st option on a championship team, an all-time great, a player who you won't be able to talk about the history of the NBA without mentioning them...that's not what Pascal is or ever will be (imo). But it's not hating, it's insane a dude who took on bball late, played more than one year at a no name college, was thought to be drafted too high in the 1st round yet here he is all-NBA & battling to be in top 15 convo, it's an amazing accomplishment & story but he's still not quite battling for true superstardom and that's with all due respect to him & the insane amount of work he's put in.

careful, you sound like a hater

[Kingsway_fan]

Pascal has and continues to be nothing short of brilliant... Sadly, we can't say the same for some of the supporting cast around him like GTj, og, Precious....

[Appostis]

The new Demar

Bold statement. You're gonna get eaten alive.

Getting eaten alive is a fair consequence for rather stupid hottakes

[manjusaka]

Pascal has and continues to be nothing short of brilliant... Sadly, we can't say the same for some of the supporting cast around him like GTj, og, Precious....

Maybe Nurse is trying something different and they are going to get used to it. Once they’re settled down they’ll be fine.

I have a blind faith in them.

[OakleyDokely]

Over the the last decade, these are the only players to win a title as the #1 option:

Lebron
Kawhi
Giannis
Curry
Durant

It's a very small and elite list. All these guys will end up top 20 players of all-time. Kawhi is borderline, but only because of his health.

Can Siakam reach this level? Probably not, very few very players in history ever reach this level. But can he be in the next group of players of really good #1s and/or elite #2s, he absolutely can and he's played at that level since the start of 2022.

[StopitLeo]

I’m not sure if Pascal will reach the upper echelon of elite players but he’s about as close as can be. He needs a 1B running mate badly if this team wants an outlook better than 2nd round playoff exit. Scottie isn’t ready and Fred (despite being an All-Star) is not good enough.

[OakleyDokely]

One of the most fascinating developments is how he's become an elite playmaker. That's even more shocking than his overall scoring ability.

Per 36, assists:

0.7 (rookie year)
3.4
3.5
3.5
4.5
5.0
6.8 (this year so far)

[MikeM]

Half this board shouldn't even be allowed to post in this thread after slagging him post bubble. Imagine not being behind this guy who leaves it all on the court every single game and came from nothing.

[Gold Dragon]

This is what people were looking at in the offseason when they claimed he has a chance to be a top 10 player. Those are absolutely top 10 numbers so I really don't get why there was some backlash there.

Someone better inform a certain poster that all these folks are just aliases of us 4 delusional homers. We wouldn’t want to upset the reality they’ve constructed.

[pingpongrac]

Half this board shouldn't even be allowed to post in this thread after slagging him post bubble. Imagine not being behind this guy who leaves it all on the court every single game and came from nothing.

Seriously. Furthermore, most of the people that put way too much stock into a 20-game sample size in the bubble tend to ignore the fact that Siakam was playing some of the best defence of his career; he held Brown to 31 points on 47 TS% with a 0.25 AST/TO ratio and Tatum to 38 points on 49 TS% with a 1.17 AST/TO ratio while his overall defence was very good in the ECSF. It would have looked even better too, but it was largely skewed by Smart turning into Curry (7/12 on 3FGA with Siakam as the nearest defender) and some tough matchups against Cs (Williams and Theis went 8/10 from the field against Siakam).

Sent from my Pixel 4 using RealGM mobile app

[Yeezus_]

It just needs to translate to more wins for the team.

[oldncreaky]

What doesn't make sense to me is particular segments of the fanbase continually asking Pascal to "prove it". How often does he need to exceed expectations to get some benefit of the doubt?

It’s funny because he actually just keeps proving it.

That said, I need Siakam to develop a reliable three ball off the dribble. That’s when he will be in the truly elite category of superstars. Right now, he’s on the cusp of the second tier stars inhabited by guys like Tatum and Embiid. And he still has to pass those guys up.

I love Pascal and I’m one of his biggest supporters, but he’s not top 10 yet. If he plays like this all season though, he will be.

A reliable off-the-dribble 3 would open up so much space for Pascal and his teammates, raise both his and his teammates percentages, lead to a bunch of wins, and make him a legit 1st team All-NBAer

[ruckus]

What doesn't make sense to me is particular segments of the fanbase continually asking Pascal to "prove it". How often does he need to exceed expectations to get some benefit of the doubt?

It’s funny because he actually just keeps proving it.

That said, I need Siakam to develop a reliable three ball off the dribble. That’s when he will be in the truly elite category of superstars. Right now, he’s on the cusp of the second tier stars inhabited by guys like Tatum and Embiid. And he still has to pass those guys up.

I love Pascal and I’m one of his biggest supporters, but he’s not top 10 yet. If he plays like this all season though, he will be.

A reliable off-the-dribble 3 would open up so much space for Pascal and his teammates, raise both his and his teammates percentages, lead to a bunch of wins, and make him a legit 1st team All-NBAer

That's a bit of a crazy ask tho. How many players have a reliable off the dribble 3? And how many developed that skill over the course of their career?

Agreed that it would open up the floor but thats a tall tree to climb.

[Kingsway_fan]

It just needs to translate to more wins for the team.

That would require epic improvements from two starters.. Trent and OG...

Pascal has more than done his part....