Pascal Siakam

Pascal Siakam, son of Victoire and Tchamo Siakam, was born in Douala, Cameroon in 1994. Siakam comes from a basketball family. His three older brothers -- Boris, Christian and James, each played collegiate basketball, at Western Kentucky University, Indiana University - Purdue University at Indianapolis and Vanderbilt University respectively. Siakam spent his formative years at a seminary in Bafia, Cameroon, handpicked by his father to enter into a role in the Church. Everything changed after he received an invitation to attend Basketball Without Borders Camp in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2012, landing a scholarship to attend God's Academy in Lewisville, Texas. A year later, he moved on to play collegiate basketball at New Mexico State University. Pascal's last name is pronounced See-AH-kum. His nickname is "Spicy P". You can follow Siakam on Twitter and Instagram @Pskills43. Pascal Siakam spent two years (2014-16) at New Mexico State. He started 27 games as a freshman and averaged 12.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game, appearing in 34 contests for the Lobos. In recognition of his efforts, Siakam was named the WAC Freshman of the Year. As a sophomore, Siakam improved in nearly every statistical category. He started all 34 games he played, averaging a double-double, with 20.3 points, 11.6 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game. Those numbers led the WAC, and Siakam was named the 2016 Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year, becoming a finalist for the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award. After his sophomore season, Siakam entered the 2016 NBA Draft, where he was selected by the Toronto Raptors with the 27th pick.