A basketball program is in the midst of a rebuild at a mid-sized community college in Alondra Park, Calif. The El Camino College Warriors haven’t played a game since February, their underachieving past half-decade remains on hiatus like many other clubs. Instead, their royal blue-trimmed court has become the site of another rebuild, this one involving Toronto Raptors star Pascal Siakam and roster-hopeful Paul Watson Jr., who have been putting in work together at the school for the better part of six weeks.
Siakam and Watson may seem an odd pairing at first blush. Although teammates, their 2019-20 campaigns couldn’t have ended more differently, and they are in very different places in their respective careers.
Watson, eight months Siakam’s junior, finds himself in a position Siakam can relate to. Coming off of a terrific breakout season with Raptors 905, Watson saw
only a brief window to shine in the relaunch. In Siakam’s rookie season, he spent half the year starting, went down to the 905 and won a championship, then had to wait for the following season for his next NBA opportunity. For Watson, his G League breakout came a little later, in his third go-around. A move to the 905 program and a connection with head coach Jama Mahlalela, plus a huge spike in his 3-point shooting, moved him from a potential second-tier international cast-off to the fringes of the NBA.
Watson then closed the reseeding schedule in the NBA bubble with a 22-point outburst, a momentum-builder he believes will carry through this offseason and into 2020-21.
“I feel like that is definitely the case,” Watson told
The Athletic last week.
The El Camino runs are part of a setup that has become known as Hoop Life L.A. Todd Ramasar, who represents Siakam and Watson at Life Sports Agency, was a college teammate of Rico Hines at UCLA. Hines is a well-known name to Toronto fans for his work with Siakam and his Los Angeles-based summer pick-up runs that have frequently involved several Raptors. Watson has worked with Hines since leaving Fresno State in 2017. Hines has stuck a flag in Watson as
the next developmental success story in-waiting.
Together, Ramasar and Hines have constructed a safe offseason campus for their players to work out in. There are skill sessions, strength training, pick-up runs, and ample COVID testing. Siakam and Watson were joined by agency-mates such as Thomas Bryant, Shaquille Harrison, Kevon Looney and Christian Vital, as well as some of Hines’ Sacramento Kings players. There were also the cameos that have become synonymous with Hines’ offseason sessions, including visits from DeMar DeRozan and Kevin Durant.
Watson is entering Raptors camp as
a favourite to hold on to his two-way roster spot. If Watson is going to win a multi-position, 3-and-D role this year, there aren’t many more dynamic players to practice guarding for six weeks than Siakam, DeRozan and especially Durant, who at his peak is perhaps the best scorer in basketball.
“Probably the hardest player I had to guard the whole time I was there was K.D.” Watson said with a laugh. “I’m not saying a whole lot, but yeah, definitely K.D. He’s looking like he hasn’t really missed a beat.”
By mid-November, the Hoop Life sessions had rolled into the Raptors’ offseason plans nicely.
Normally, the Raptors have their developmental players spend time in Las Vegas, Toronto, Burnaby and Los Angeles as part of their summer program. But with a tight turnaround between the end of the season and the start of camp, as well as necessary health protocols, that was heavily abbreviated. The Raptors instead held a quick mini-camp at Sports Academy in nearby Thousand Oaks, where Siakam, Watson and others mixed in with some of the younger, newer or just basketball-hungry Raptors.
That won’t offer quite the same level of chemistry and familiarity as the normal approach, but little is normal about the Raptors’ temporary Tampa home. The more important takeaway for Siakam is that he was able to return to the offseason routine that’s helped him improve dramatically as a pro.
For Watson, playing time on Nick Nurse’s second unit is usually earned through defence, and even an abbreviated offseason guarding some of the best players in the world, including his teammate, can only help.
“It’s the best of the best in there,” Watson said. “It was nothing new to me, you know, being in a gym with those guys. Go in there and play, and do my thing, and everything else will take care of itself.”
It helps, too, that some of what Watson is ironing out in his offensive package are elements Siakam has worked on himself. What’s the next move after attacking a closeout? Where’s the read if the transition opportunity doesn’t materialize? What’s the right level of aggression for a role player that’s tough to stop on his path to the rim, but has to stay within the team concept? Siakam’s proven an invaluable resource to him, even more now than in offseasons past at Hines’ runs.
For Watson – and, he thinks, Siakam – the most important thing was returning to a setup that helped him take a massive leap in 2019-20. It was a breakout year with the 905, including cameos with the Hawks and Raptors. With a main roster spot up for grabs and two-way players able to spend much more time with the NBA club this year, Watson’s chance at playing time – and solidifying his spot as an NBA regular moving forward – has never been more attainable.
“I feel like I was in the best position I could be, being in there with those guys, and it only helped me get better this offseason. I feel like it’s definitely gonna carry over to next season,” Watson said. “You know, just to do my role, not do too much, but at the same time make a name for myself. Just play ball.”
Apparently got some sessions with Demar and Durant too. Could be a surprise contributor.