Three extremely early trade ideas for the reeling Indiana Pacers

Pacers receive: Brandon Ingram

Pelicans receive: Caris LeVert, TJ Warren, 2022 1st round pick Lottery protected

This is the big juicy trade I came up with for this article. Initially, my trade idea was just TJ Warren and Caris LeVert for Brandon Ingram, but I thought to myself I’m not sure if this is enough to get this deal done. I decided to add in the 2022 1st lottery-protected to give the trade a little more juice, but still, cover the Pacers’ butts if they happen to miss the playoffs.

Ingram is having a solid year for the very terrible Pelicans. He is averaging 21.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game while posting a True Shooting percentage of 51.6 percent. By adding Brandon Ingram to the roster, the Pacers would get a true three-level scorer at the wing which is something they haven’t had since Paul George. The downside to adding Ingram is that the defense may take a hit as he isn’t the best defender.

At first, I wanted this trade to be just Warren and LeVert for Ingram, but the more I thought to myself I couldn’t see the Pelicans making this trade. Maybe with the added first-round pick David Griffin and Co. take a meeting on this. Then again they have also made moves that were way more head-scratching than this.