After a down season in 2020-21, the Toronto Raptors are right in the thick of the 2022 NBA Playoff picture, impressing on a nightly basis by finding different ways to win games.
As such, the Raptors will be well-represented in Cleveland at the 2022 NBA All-Star Weekend, with Precious Achiuwa and Scottie Barnes already earning selections to the Rising Stars Challenge and the team likely getting an All-Star after having none last season.
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In fact, it's almost a certainty that the Raptors will be represented in the 2022 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 20, but who will it be?
For some time now, it's been viewed as a foregone conclusion that Fred VanVleet would earn the first All-Star selection of his career this year, but are we sure that it won't be Pascal Siakam that gets the nod?
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To be clear, this isn't to put VanVleet down or pit these two against one another as competition — they're teammates and good friends, after all — but with the Raptors sitting at eighth in the East with a 26-23 record, it's developing into an either-or situation, with the team unlikely to receive two All-Star nominations.
That said, don't be surprised if it's Siakam.
The conversation surrounding VanVleet's All-Star candidacy was at its strongest in early January, when an impressive stretch of play helped lead the Raptors to a six-game win streak. As a result, VanVleet was aptly named Eastern Conference Player of the week on Monday, Jan. 9.
In the time since, a heavy workload may have taken its toll on VanVleet, who, while averaging 18.3 points and 8.3 assists, is shooting just 33.0 percent from the field over his last 10 games.
Almost quietly, Siakam has remained consistently dominant all season after a rough showing in his first five games. Since his sixth game on Nov. 19, Siakam is averaging 22.0 points, 8.8 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game, doing a little bit of everything on both ends of the floor.
At one point, there were rumblings that Siakam was arguably better than he was in 2019-20 when he earned the first All-Star selection of his career and made the All-NBA Second Team. By now, there should be no argument — this is the best version of Siakam that we've ever seen.
Even when taking Siakam's rough start to the season into account, he's averaging 21.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.1 assists through his first 36 games.
Think about that.
Siakam has placed himself alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, James Harden and Nikola Jokic as one of five players to average 21 or more points, eight or more rebounds and five or more assists per game this season. Two of the aforementioned four are All-Star starters and the other two are essential locks to be All-Star reserves, so why not Siakam?
Although Siakam missed 11 of the first 13 games of the season due to shoulder rehab and an additional two games while in the league's health and safety protocols, it doesn't take away from the fact that he's been one of the best forwards in the Eastern Conference this season.
Factor in an injury to starting All-Star forward Kevin Durant and suddenly there could be more room in the East frontcourt. With Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid already in the starting lineup, the Celtics' Jayson Tatum and the Heat's Jimmy Butler can be looked at as essential locks as well.
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So where do we go from there? Is it Siakam? Jarrett Allen? Miles Bridges? Domantas Sabonis? It's hard to say any of the aforementioned frontcourt players have a stronger case than the Raptors' do-it-all forward.
That's where things get difficult.
There's a world in which VanVleet's early push and Siakam's consistent overall push result in both Raptors earning an All-Star selection in 2022. Given the Raptors standing, it may feel slightly unlikely, but it isn't totally unprecedented.
Just last season, both Tatum and Jaylen Brown were selected as All-Star reserves while the Celtics were a game below .500 and in the East's sixth seed. History could repeat itself in 2022 with a more successful Raptors team getting the recognition it deserves.
Let's face it, given the adversity this team has dealt with through 50 games, they're clearly much better than their record indicates.
Whether or not it's Siakam or VanVleet — or both — that gets chosen to play in the 2022 NBA All-Star Game, it will be well-deserved.
