Pascal Siakam Proved He's For The Fans When Asked About The Raptors' Terrible Home Record
"We gotta fix that. It’s not acceptable."
The Raptors repeatedly expressed, in no uncertain terms, how much they missed playing for their fans after being left stranded in Tampa last season. Still, their long-awaited return to Scotiabank Arena hasn't exactly proved fruitful for the team.
A devastating loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night placed Toronto's home record at a dismal 2-8. And, as you could probably guess, they aren't happy about it, especially not Pascal Siakam.
Spicy P let reporters know where he stands on the issue during a post-game press conference, arguing the team's home-court losing streak is unfair to fans.
"We gotta fix that. It’s not acceptable. We can’t play like that at home and I think we always say we have this fan base and all that, but we have to show up at home," Siakam said.
"We have to make it part of what we do and we gotta be better. No excuses, that can’t happen. … The fans don’t deserve that," he added.
The rising NBA star, who has been with the Raptors since 2016, also opened up about how the team is handling its new roster, which is now primarily made up of rookies and younger players.
"Obviously, we have like a young team and we want to have fun, but losing is not fun, so once we get out on the floor we have to be serious about what we do and communicate, execute a game plan and have fun while winning."
Losing at home isn't the only hurdle the team has faced this season, as they've also been plagued with injuries and unexpected absences.
It was announced earlier this week that Goran Dragic, one of the team's most seasoned players, would be out indefinitely due to a personal matter.