Pascal Siakam
Photo: Carlos Osorio/Associated Press

Toronto Raptors’ head coach Nick Nurse explained the reason behind his decision to bench Pascal Siakam in the previous game against the New York Knicks.

The 2019 NBA champion did not get to any specifics, but he admitted Siakam did not meet certain standards and he decided to reprimand the forward from Cameroon.

(via The Score):

“It’s something we’re trying to work out here a little bit, and work it out early in the season and not let it prolong,” he told reporters, as reported by Sportsnet. “Again, more just an expectation of how we want to play and not individually how anybody wants to play.

“But there’s certain standards that we want to set and he just needs to get on board with those. And he can do it. He can do it. It may be the first part of the process, but he can do it.”

Siakam sat in the game against New York Thursday because he left the court early after fouling out in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday.

The 26-year-old picked up five fouls within a stretch of just over six minutes late in the fourth quarter against the Sixers, but he did not remain with the team on the sidelines.

Siakam is averaging 18.7 points, nine rebounds, 4.7 assists, and a steal in three games this season while playing 39 minutes per contest.