Toronto Raptors star Pascal Siakam is expected to practice on Friday with hopes of making his return to the starting lineup in the next week, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. Siakam has been out since Dec. 18 with a groin injury, a stretch through which the Raptors have gone 6-5.
The Raptors will face the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday without Siakam but could have him back by Wednesday, Jan. 15 against the Oklahoma City Thunder on the road. If not then, possibly Jan. 17's game against the Washington Wizards at home if they decide to wait longer.
Toronto has heavily relied on veteran point guard Kyle Lowry, who leads the league in minutes per game, during Siakam's absence. Lowry is averaging 23.3 points per game since Siakam went out and is back to his high-scoring ways this season, posting 20.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 7.6 assists per game.
The Raptors have managed to hold onto the fourth spot in the East with a 25-13 record, but have the Philadelphia 76ers on their tail, only a half-game behind. The defending champions trail the Boston Celtics by a full game and are 2.5 games behind the Miami Heat while standing a whopping 7.5 games behind the league-leading Milwaukee Bucks.
The team will be able to better assess what they must do by the trade deadline once Siakam returns and gets a few games following the injury. The Raptors could be potential buyers this year, but also have the expiring contracts of Serge Ibaka and Marc Gasol to deal with, as well as the premise of bundling Lowry into the deal, who still has another year and $31 million built into his extended contract.
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