'I just missed them': Pascal Siakam on crunch time free throws vs. Bulls

Raptors forward Pascal Siakam discusses the free throws he missed down the stretch, what changed in the 4th quarter and reflects on the season.

Video Transcript

- --buckets. But you still had some chances to either tie or win. Obviously, you were on the line there at the end. And maybe walk through that situation and, from there, maybe your thoughts on the fourth quarter as a whole.

PASCAL SIAKAM: I mean, I think, yeah, like, we didn't-- we didn't have our best fourth quarter in terms of just, like, playing the way that we play. And we didn't-- we couldn't get stops. Like, they were scoring. Zach got-- got hot. And, you know, he was scoring a lot. I don't know if that was the third quarter or the fourth. I don't know. But they got a lot of points in transition and then things like that.

And then, yeah, like, bad free throw night. Like, I, you know, just missed some free throws, especially those three at the end or two at the end. Super important. I don't know. I just-- I just missed them, to be honest. And yeah, at the end of the day, you know, it probably-- it's gonna come down to those free throws. But, you know, we-- we had a good lead. And we didn't-- we didn't execute the way we wanted to.

- Is it [INAUDIBLE]-- like, free throws-- you know, they tend to balance out over time.

PASCAL SIAKAM: Yeah.

- But is that the lesson-- like, you don't want to find yourself in a one-game scenario because--

PASCAL SIAKAM: Right. I mean, at the end of the day, yeah because, again, we-- I mean, I think-- I thought we played a good basketball game, you know, until, you know, like, some moments out there in the second half where we didn't play well. But, you know, when I look over the board, like, you know, like, not-- not a great free throw night for us in general. And, like you said, that's what-- you know, in some of those games, you can't have them. And-- and yeah, I got to be better. I can't be 5-for-11 from the free throw line.

- Do you think-- there was the screaming. Do you think the screaming during the free throws played a role in the team's free throw shooting tonight?

PASCAL SIAKAM: No, I don't. I don't. I don't-- I have no idea, really.

- Pascal, how far away do you think this team is from kind of being where you want to be?

PASCAL SIAKAM: I don't know. I think, again, like, we've definitely shown some good stretches but also not-- like, some stretches where we weren't good at all. And I think that, you know, we're gonna have to be better. And-- and, obviously, like, when you look at the season, a lot of ups and downs. Like, you look our record. You know, 41-41-- like, you know, just not consistent enough. And that's got to change.

- There was a stretch in the fourth quarter where you guys had a few turnovers in a row. What were you seeing there? Was it more the Bulls ratcheting up their defense? Or was it you guys just [INAUDIBLE]?

PASCAL SIAKAM: Oh, I don't know. I don't know. I couldn't really tell you. I think, you know, we made some-- some tough passes. And there was a couple of doubles and things like that, you know, and passes that we usually-- we usually make. And they were aggressive. But I think that, you know, we can make those reads most of the time. But yeah, credit to them. They got the-- the turnovers when they needed them.

- What did this game feel like? Was like a playoff game or something?

PASCAL SIAKAM: Yeah, it's weird-- weird. I haven't been in this situation. But it does feel like a playoff game because you've got to win. Like, it's an important game-- win or go home, basically. So it definitely had that feel.

- For quite a couple of games this year where you guys gave up bigger leads, what were you trying to sort of, like, carry out to your team as, like, a leader when you guys saw that lead dwindle away?

PASCAL SIAKAM: I think just continue to just calm down, play within ourselves, and kind of like go to things that was working for us, you know, when we had that lead. So I think just-- mostly just don't let the pressure kind of like get us out of what we want to do.

- What's the plan for the next few days? Do you need some time after a tough season like this to kind of clear your head a little bit?

PASCAL SIAKAM: I mean, yeah, for sure. For sure. You need just-- just, yeah, clear your mind, basically. And-- and at the end of the day, like, yeah, it was a tough season for us in general and, like I said, a lot-- a lot of ups and downs. And, you know, you just want to-- yeah, we just want to kind of like sit back, evaluate everything, see what-- what we can do to get better, obviously. Just, for me, continue to work. But first, just relax. Clear your mind.

- Pascal, the offense this whole season has been kind of like peaks and valleys. And, like, you've had a lot of those sort of offensive threats like you had in the fourth quarter tonight. Where you sit, like, what's happening when things are going well offensively for you guys? And what's happening when things are grinding down?

PASCAL SIAKAM: I don't know. I think, I mean, sometimes we miss shots. Sometimes, like I said, turnovers, things like that-- that can change like the rhythm of everything.

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- Thank you.

- Thank you.