The Indiana Pacers are still on the hunt for prized restricted free agent Deandre Ayton, but transaction panels involving the big man has seemingly been stuck in limbo despite widely anticipated traction in the last few days.
With reports popping out that the Phoenix Suns are now likely to match any offer sheet for Ayton, the trade market has once again emerged as the most viable route for the Pacers to nab the former No. 1 pick.
One NBA insider in particular recently suggested a four-team blockbuster trade involving Indiana and Ayton as part of a more expansive package to capitalize on some big names being made available for trade by their respective clubs.
Bobby Marks suggests a four-team blockbuster trade involving the Indiana Pacers
Bobby Marks, an esteemed NBA front office insider, dished on ESPN that a huge trade could benefit the remaining teams that are still active in the offseason. His suggested trade looked like this:
"Indiana receives: Deandre AytonBrooklyn receives: Donovan Mitchell, Myles Turner, Mikal BridgesPhoenix receives: Kevin DurantUtah receives: Ben Simmons, Cam Thomas, 5 first-round picks, 3 first-round pick swaps"
In all honesty, this blockbuster deal makes a lot of sense for the Pacers. As long as Indiana retains full-pledge interest on Deandre Ayton, then dangling away a flight risk like Turner should be a no-brainer. It remains to be seen how much draft capital the front office is willing to mortgage, if at all, but a pick swap in a later year could be pretty justifiable, though a first-round selection outright may prompt them to look elsewhere. Any 2023 first-rounder should be shelved.
The question here, however, is the willingness of the Utah Jazz to part with Mitchell on such terms. The five first-rounders and three swap rights are plenty attractive, but adding that to their already-robust stash of draft capital via the Rudy Gobert trade may be prove to be an excessive embarrassment of riches. In addition, Ben Simmons’ contract right now is considered to pack a negative value around the league.
On the other hand, the Suns and the Nets should benefit from this deal right from the get-go. Phoenix adds KD to banner the most intimidating trio in the league while Brooklyn can immediately compete with All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell and All-NBA defender Mikal Bridges at the helm. Turner is a very good add-on, and his expiring deal brings some considerable financial flexibility as well.
Overall, the Indiana Pacers have a bunch of avenues to take in their chase for Deandre Ayton, and the abovementioned four-team deal is certainly one of them. Multi-team trades rarely actualize in the NBA, but it definitely seems like the Blue and Gold could benefit by riding the wild player movement front in the league lately.