Star Siakam overcame dad’s death to live NBA dream

Pascal Siakam (pictured) achieved his late dad’s dream of playing in the NBA. Now every game the Cameroonian forward plays for the Toronto Raptors is dedicated to his father’s memory.

Siakam scored a career playoff high 32 points to power the Raptors over the defending champion Golden State Warriors 118-109 in Thursday’s opener of the NBA Finals then promptly admitted, “I’m just doing it for my dad.”

Half a day later, the 25-year-old African star was still thinking of his father, Tchamo Siakam, who died from injuries in a 2014 auto accident before seeing his youngest of four sons realise the family dream.

“For me it’s bigger than basketball and every night I go out there, I have a bigger purpose and I play for something bigger than just basketball,” Siakam said. “That’s what make it special that every night I’m out there, no matter the result, no matter how many points I score, I’m playing for something bigger than myself.”

Siakam had three older brothers who played major US college basketball but Pascal’s interest in the sport only came in his teens ahead of his big break being discovered in an African Basketball Without Borders camp.

He wound up at New Mexico State when his father died and his mother, Victorie, pushed him not to return home for a funeral but keep working on making his dad’s dream a reality.

“In terms of adversity, I went through something that I considered the hardest moment of my life when my dad passed away,” Siakam said. “I was in college and just away from my family. Thank God I had the support of my teammates and coaches in college that helped me go through it.

“But it was definitely one of the toughest moments in my life," he said.