At this juncture, with the 2020-21 NBA season nearing its fruitful conclusion, rumors are brewing to peak form for most teams. Specifically, the Indiana Pacers, who are coming off a perplexing season and are itching to get back and win in the postseason, have been common sights in recent rumor mills.
Much has been said of the Blue and Gold’s organizational urgency to win now, as manifested by their hiring of championship coach Rick Carlisle and their reported aggressive stance on landing top-notch talents. Either way, all these bode well for the franchise in their quest of finally breaking into the upper echelon of the league.
The Indiana Pacers are at the crux of the rumor mill lately
As things currently stand, the Pacers have what it takes to contend in the Eastern Conference. After all, the team deploys perhaps one of the most well-rounded starting fives in the league, a new coach with championship pedigree, a balanced and reliable bench unit and a stable front office. If stars finally align for Indy next season, then fans can only expect some big things from the franchise moving forward.
Nevertheless, with how rumors are swirling around the team, efforts to improve the roster have been well-documented. However, how many of these are true and actually viable? Here are four of the latest rumors surrounding the team and whether you should buy or sell on them actually occurring this offseason.
The Indiana Pacers are interested in a trade with the Houston Rockets involving Eric Gordon and the 13th pick
With veteran coach Rick Carlisle as the new man of the sidelines for the Indiana Pacers, the franchise solidified its intent to maximize its winning window with the current core. After a lost campaign last season which ended in a lottery finish, the Blue and Gold will have the opportunity to bolster its roster in the deep 2021 NBA Draft.
Owners of the 13th pick, the Pacers will almost certainly snag a prospect who can elevate the team’s upside and contribute immediately. However, with the veteran-favoring Carlisle at the helm on the same tangent as the franchise’s current direction, dangling their first-round pick for an established veteran is logical and very possible.
True to this, Indiana reportedly engaged with Houston in trade talks involving the 13th pick and veteran scorer Eric Gordon. After all, Gordon has been one of the most prolific bench scorers in the NBA for quite some time now, even winning a Sixth Man of the Year award back in 2017. In theory, he can be a sparkplug off the bench while slotting in as a starter if injuries arise.
Not so fast. In reality, dangling a lottery pick in this deep draft for Gordon despite his injury history, age, and relative inefficiency in recent seasons is taking one step forward, but two steps back. Even though the team’s in-house alternatives off the bench are legitimate flight risks to leave in free agency, Indiana will be able to accrue more lucrative offers for their lottery selection.
Verdict: Sell on the Pacers trading for Gordon, buy on them being interested in trading the 13th pick
The Indiana Pacers are willing to dive into luxury territory to re-sign impending free agent Doug McDermott
By all indications, seven-year forward Doug McDermott seems inclined on remaining with the Indiana Pacers, at least on principle. However, coming off a career-year, the veteran sniper will surely have a lot of options in free agency and is widely projected to become a primary target of teams in need of shooting and secondary scoring.
In free agency, money talks. And while the Pacers can easily offer the most for McDermott since the team own his Bird rights, signing him to a new deal, which projects to be in the 10-15 million range, will catapult the team to luxury territory which is far from ideal for a franchise that just missed the postseason.
Fortunately for Indiana, McDermott has explicitly expressed his willingness to remain as a Pacer, especially with the sense of familiarity and belongingness that the team has cultivated in recent years. It may very well be a deal breaker for other teams, since the sharpshooter may reasonably pass up on slightly bigger offers if he prioritizes stability, which is evidently present for him in the Circle City.
Verdict: Buy on Indiana aggressively trying to re-sign McDermott
The Indiana Pacers are one of the teams aggressively pursuing Philadelphia’s Ben Simmons
Despite their initial offer for Philadelphia 76ers All-Star Ben Simmons getting jettisoned, the Indiana Pacers reportedly remain as one of the teams who are aggressively pursuing the 24-year-old, a crowded list that includes Cleveland, Minnesota and Toronto.
While Simmons is coming off a disgruntling playoff run which culminated in the top-seeded 76ers bowing down to the fifth-seeded Hawks in the Conference Semifinals, the young All-Star is still among the league’s top-notch players with his unique playmaking, physical gifts and tremendous defensive ability.
Fitting him in will be a complex and tricky proposition and acquiring him in the first place prompts a substantial return or even an overpay, but his upside should be more than worth it. For the Indiana Pacers, however, Simmons doesn’t make a ton of sense next to the team’s core players, the actual roster construction and the franchise’s expenditure limits.
Verdict: Buy on Indiana’s interest in Simmons, sell on them aggressively pursuing him
The Indiana Pacers will be very open on trading Aaron Holiday this offseason
One of the oft-forgotten pieces of the team is guard Aaron Holiday who, after a mini-breakout year in 2019-20, came crashing in the previous campaign. Despite the Indiana Pacers’ myriad of injuries, the third-year guard’s almost season-long issue with inconsistency prevented him from carving a similarly consistent role on a nightly basis.
Thus, the youngest Holiday being deemed as widely available in the trade market is not at all surprising. With Indy set on the guard positions with starters Malcolm Brogdon and Caris LeVert, critical bench piece TJ McConnell who’s a virtual lock to stay in the Circle City, the ever-growing Edmond Sumner, and an upcoming lottery pick, the opportunity for Aaron to regain his footing with more court time is slim, especially with Carlisle preferring cerebral playmakers.
At this stage of his career, Holiday is best served as a sparkplug off the bench who can torch teams with his streaky shooting from anywhere on the court while providing high risk, high reward playmaking and pesky perimeter defense. He should still garner ample interest from many teams needing a bench scorer who still has upside to grow as a point guard.
Verdict: Buy on the Pacers attempting to trade Holiday