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8p9s Roundtable: The Pacers are better than expected, but is trouble ahead?

By William Furr

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 06: Victor Oladipo #4 of the Indiana Pacers points to the court in celebration during the game against the Chicago Bulls at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on December 6, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 06: Victor Oladipo #4 of the Indiana Pacers points to the court in celebration during the game against the Chicago Bulls at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on December 6, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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Bojan Bogdanovic of the Indiana Pacers
CHICAGO, IL – NOVEMBER 10: Bojan Bogdanovic #44 of the Indiana Pacers looks to pass against Justin Holiday #7 of the Chicago Bulls at the United Center on November 10, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. The Pacers defeated the Bulls 105-87. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

Should the Pacers be buyers or sellers at the deadline (or stand pat)?

Eggers: Sellers, all the way. The Pacers have a good 4-5 movable pieces that almost certainly won’t be a part of their future. And realistically, I have some doubts about the viability of this squad when it comes to a postseason run.

If I thought they had a shot at winning a playoff series, I’d say go all in, keep the roster intact and go for it. But I’m not sure that’ll happen. And it’ll suck having to rebuild with first-round losses and high-teen draft picks.

If Pritchard can unload some veterans and grab some young talent and/or picks to boot, he should go for it. Nothing forced, though. I wouldn’t mind the Pacers holding if nothing worthwhile comes around.

Furr: If they’re going to be anything, it should be sellers. This team has been surprisingly good when healthy, and it’d be tempting to try to add a piece before the deadline. That would be the absolute wrong move. The ages of the 3 guys they should be building around (25/21/21 for Victor Oladipo, Myles Turner, and Domas Sabonis) would likely not sync up well with any incoming deadline help.

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The Pacers should be building towards that timeline, rather than scraping and selling out future picks/money to maybe get into a competitive first round series. I would think it far more likely that some of the soon to be free agents (or guys with light guarantees next year) become available.

It’s hard to trade an important piece of a playoff team, but if the Pacers start to fall out of it, you could see guys like Thad Young, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Darren Collison become available.

Renz: This is a tough Q. Do the Pacers – who may or may not be overachieving in a weird season for the NBA’s East – trade a pick + TJ Leaf + salary for a useful piece for a playoff push? Who is that useful piece – and is it smart to pull the trigger before we know what Glenn Robinson III will bring to the team after recovering from ankle surgery?

Then, there is the argument that the Pacers should ship out a vet – maybe for a pick or a young player, maybe for someone who fits better with this team. Thad’s name gets floated out the most during these trade musings, and while his box-score production could be equaled by a few guys, will any of those guys truly be available, and if so, can they provide the intangibles Thad gives Indiana?

And if the Pacers were to trade one of the other vets — say DC or Bojan — could the team reasonably expect to receive a pick or a young prospect in return?

I’m not so sure the grass is greener in this case. I vote the Pacers play this season out with the roster they have.

East: Stand pat is my short answer. The team is exceeding expectations and a trade could break the chemistry that the team has been humming with. If I had to lean a direction, I would pick selling. This Pacers era will probably hit its peak in 3 or 4 years, with Vic in his prime and Myles/Domas approaching it

If the Pacers could get good future value for Collison/Bogdanovic/Thad Young (guys who probably aren’t a part of the future) in a trade, I think they should do it.

Gibson: There isn’t a need to make a trade that the Pacers don’t ‘win’. The team is overperforming expectations, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to push in the chips.

Look at the Phoenix Suns if you want to find a team that overplayed their hand and ended up worse off by trying to win now.

If they trade away Darren Collison or Bojan Bogdanovic, that’s fine. I have no emotional investment in them. But pretty much everyone else I’d rather see stay with the team.

Chances are they couldn’t find a player that takes the team deeper into the playoffs anyway, so I don’t see the point of trading any of the team’s youth away for more established talent.

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