Victor Oladipo is out, Caris LeVert is in. But what does that mean for the Indiana Pacers?
After off-season rumors about whether or not Victor Oladipo would be staying with the Indiana Pacers long term, the Indiana Pacers have traded Victor Oladipo to the Houston Rockets for Caris LeVert and a second-round pick as part of the blockbuster trade that sent James Harden to Brooklyn.
The nuances of team-building is a very fine art, and a two-time All-Star like Oladipo is not easily replaced. But when a star player shows signs of having eyes for other places in the last year of a deal, a smart front office will not let him walk away for nothing. Not only did Kevin Pritchard not let Oladipo walk for nothing, but he also got a young piece in Caris LeVert that was one of the best returns the Pacers could hope for before the season started.
The most important factor of this trade and something that needs to stand alone is Victor Oladipo was not coming back to the Indiana Pacers after this season.
It hurts to see, we may not want to believe it, but after all of the smoke that came out in the last couple of months, it was clear to people around the team that a trade was more likely than not. Not only was Oladipo wanting to go to a bigger market, but he also was wanting a full max that Indiana would have had a hard time giving him even if he wanted to stay.
The only question marks about the situation were whether or not Oladipo was truly healthy, and what sort of return the Pacers could get for a player with significant injury history on an expiring deal.
Now that we know the return, what impact does Caris LeVert have on this Pacers team on and off the court?