NBA Awards 2019: 3 reasons why Pascal Siakam should win the Most Improved Player Award

NBA's Most Improved Player Award is given to a player with an enormous leap in terms of skills and impact as compared to the previous season. Last year it was won by the deserving Giannis Antetokounmpo and this year, the list has been shortlisted to final three- D'Angelo Russell, De'Aaron Fox and Pascal Siakam. Like every year, this time also it will be a tight contest between the last three. However, Pascal Siakam has a much stronger case than anyone else.

The 25-year-old Cameroonian has come a long way from where he started his career in basketball. With his repertoire of moves and burly framework, Siakam has captured the eyes of the bigs in the NBA, especially this year. His steely confidence in himself was conspicuous when he took the floor in the Game 1 of the NBA Finals where he knocked down 32 points. He is no more an average player in the NBA but has transformed into a force.

Here are the three main reasons why Siakam is well-poised to lift the NBA Most Improved Player award.

#3 The transition from a role player to an NBA champion

Siakam has almost always been clutch down the stretch

From being a rookie who barely started a game to becoming the linchpin of Raptors' squad this year, Siakam is the most improved player in the NBA. After all, he had an NBA championship to his name this year.

If we look at his game in the first two seasons, Siakam was a role player for the Raptors. We could see him cutting to basket, providing screens to Lowry, or hammering down those dunks off the lob from Lowry. Fast forward one year, and we saw him crossing over defenders, shooting three-pointers, hustling at the defensive end and taking care of business during the clutch situations.

While we saw him take the backseat a year ago, Siakam didn't hesitate in coming to the fore when the team needed him to and assisted the Raptors with some high IQ plays down the stretch.

"I'm definitely not a personal-type guy where I care about personal accolades and stuff, but definitely a team-guy first. Something like that, in terms of who I am and the person that I've become, and people that know my story and how I came up, that would mean a lot just because that's me. Like, that's literally who I am as a player and as a person." - Pascal Siakam

#2 No more an ancillary to Kawhi

Siakam's versatility only helps his cause

Kawhi Leonard might be considered as the main man for the Raptors, but Siakam was equally instrumental. Raptors had the second best record in the East with 57 wins in the season, and their line-up revolved around Siakam. He was flexible with the big lineup that included Leonard and Gasol, and even with the shorter one that had Serge Ibaka. Overall, he was not only an outstanding player but also a blessing to the coach.

In a regular season matchup against the Washington Wizards earlier this year, Siakam made full use of Kawhi Leonard's absence and dropped a career-high 44 points on 15-of-25 shooting to lead the Raptors to a comfortable 129-120 win.

With the type of role and amount of impact that Siakam has had on this Raptors team, no other contender for the MIP award even comes.

"He is certainly deserving. If there's somebody else who is deserving, then sometimes that's the way it works. But he's had an unbelievable season." - Nick Nurse

#1 The stats never lie

Siakam saw a monumental rise in his production this season

Pascal Siakam averaged 4.2 points, 0.3 assists and 3.4 rebounds in his first season in the NBA. These stats improved to 7.3 points, 2.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game in the second season. However, Siakam's stats have peaked to 16.9 points, 3.1 assists and 6.9 rebounds per game this season. He is no longer a big man who can provide some minutes off the bench but has become one of the leaders in the starting lineup on whom the team can rely upon.

His field goal percentage has improved to 54.9% and the number of minutes played has gone up to 30.9. The best aspect, though, has been his three-point shooting. Siakam is no more a player who can be left open on the wings. He shot a healthy 36.9% from beyond the three-point line this season which is a nearly 15% increase from the previous campaign.

But it wasn't only his offense that caught the eye. Defense is a factor which succinctly differentiates Siakam from the rest of the contenders. He has been excellent on the defensive end and has always met the expectations of his squad. He has quite often taken the responsibility of marking the best player of the opposition when Leonard is not on the floor and done remarkably well.