Indiana Pacers: Malcolm Brogdon’s stock is reportedly lower than expected

Heading to a crucial offseason, the Indiana Pacers are widely expected to double down on their youth movement with the NBA Draft and make way for younger players by cutting costs or dangling away their veteran pieces. However, one veteran’s trade stock is reportedly not as high as anticipated.

Malcolm Brogdon, who spent the last three seasons in Indiana, is one player whom the Pacers are reportedly willing to move this offseason. Having long been one of the better starting backcourt cogs in the league, fans and pundits alike are projecting him to be an attractive get for playoff teams, especially those in contention. However, one credible source recently cautioned against riding the Brogdon hype.

The Indiana Pacers may not get their desired return value for Malcolm Brogdon

In a recent podcast, Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer had this to say:

"[Myles] Turner definitely, I think, has pretty substantially higher value [than Brogdon]…A lot of teams that I’ve talked to…those teams are looking at Brogdon as a negative value contract right now due to the injury status."

Comparing him to Myles Turner, a unique modern-day center who can function as a defensive anchor and a floor spacer, could swing the tides on Malcolm Brogdon’s favor on the first impression given the former’s bulk of potential bidders and expiring contract, but teams do not seem to be too hospitable to the latter’s exhaustive injury history.

In three seasons donning the Pacers colorways, the 29-year-old has missed a grand total of 81 games due to injury, accounting for more than 35 percent of games played during that span. Fating back to his rookie season with the Bucks, the most games he has ever logged in a single campaign was…during his rookie year, when he managed to suit up for 75 out of 82 contests.

Want your voice heard? Join the 8 Points, 9 Seconds team!

Write for us!

His per-game numbers are indeed a cut above most players in his position, but generating a more prominent role for him has made a drastic impact on his efficiency. Once a bona fide 50-40-90 guy, Brogdon has now struggled with being the focal point of the offense. He is still bound to explode at a given night, but his stats spread out to a season have taken a hit. This season, he turned in his worst three-point shooting campaign ever, hitting just 31.2 percent of his treys.

Brogdon is still a positive contributor in the other departments, though with few lapses. His defense is not what it once was factoring in his heavy duty on offense, and his passing has been erratic at times especially in the clutch, but overall, he is still someone whom teams can bank on to play steadily with the right aggression.

However, clubs nitpicking at the playmaker’s durability (or lack thereof) is certainly out of their control, as it is a no-nonsense fact. Owing to a miscellany of injuries, Brogdon is not the most reliable player on the availability department, and he is prone to missing games at the last minute for that reason.

Perhaps the Indiana Pacers should temper their expectations a bit on the Malcolm Brogdon front. Should they indeed seek to move him to unclog the backcourt and open up more minutes for he younger players, it would serve them well to acknowledge the asterisks in his game and hope that one team has too good of a need for him to take on the risks associated with trading for the floor general.