How does the Oladipo/LeVert trade impact the Indiana Pacers?

Caris LeVert’s Off-Court Impact

Caris LeVert just turned 26 in August and is in his fifth year in the league as he starts his Indiana Pacers career. As we well know, even a player in his fifth year can blossom into a franchise level player with the right situation, and the Pacers have been that situation recently. I’m not saying that LeVert will take the astronomical leap that Oladipo did in his first year as a Pacer, but it is exciting LeVert still has room to grow as a player.

As far as salary goes, LeVert is under contract for about $17.5 million a year until 2023. This is almost exactly the timeline the rest of the Pacers core. Brogdon, Sabonis, Myles Turner, and Justin Holiday are all under contract until 2023 as well, while T.J. Warren, Jeremy Lamb, Aaron Holiday, and Edmund Sumner will all be up for new deals in 2022. That roster continuity could go a long way to building something special, especially with everyone being in or approaching their prime.

The other important aspect of the deal was that by trading away Oladipo’s $21 million for LeVert’s $16.2 million, they clear about $4.7 million for this year. Not only that, but it saves even more if we consider the possibility of paying Oladipo a max contract next year. LeVert is coming in at almost half the $30 million Oladipo may be looking for while being younger and with a less significant injury history.

Speaking of injury history, even though LeVert hasn’t had the significant injury that Oladipo does, he has missed some games due to injury. In 2018 he missed 41 games with a right foot dislocation, and in 2019 he missed 24 games with ligament damage to his thumb. These injuries aren’t nearly as traumatic as a ruptured quad, and they aren’t related or compounding, but they are still something to be aware of as a core piece of the team.

And last but not least, one of the most important factors that Caris LeVert brings to this Pacers team is that they no longer have a cloud over their head. There are no more question marks about our potential franchise player wanting out, no more concerns about whose team it may be, and no more question marks about what this team may look like in the future.

If we learned anything from the last time the Indiana Pacers traded their star player, the winner of the trade may not be who we think, but in Kevin Pritchard I trust. There are some question marks about fit, but the team ended up getting a great young talent out of a player that was not long for this team. If we put our hearts aside, I don’t think there is any doubt that this is a great deal for the Pacers and should hopefully continue to provide exciting basketball for years to come.