Indiana Pacers: Ranking the 5 best trades in franchise history
By Joe Lyon
4. Mark Jackson becomes the Indiana Pacers’ rock in the mid-to-late 90s
Mark Jackson holds a distinction as being traded to the Pacers twice in his career, once from the Clippers and once from the Nuggets. Yet the initial trade is the one that comes in at number four on this list.
The Pacers had gone 47-35 in the 93-94 season and had an abundance of talent with Reggie Miller, Dale and Antonio Davis, and Rik Smits. Yet they lacked a point guard that could help them cross the bridge and get them into contender status. Out in Los Angeles was a seasoned, but still relatively young, point guard named Mark Jackson that had helped both numerous Knicks and Clippers teams reach the playoffs multiple times. However, the Pacers had an opportunity to acquire him.
The Pacers traded for Jackson after the 93-94 season sending some young talent back to acquire him. Ultimately, Jackson meshed well with the Pacers and formed a formidable starting lineup of Jackson, Miller, the Davis brothers, and Smits. This team was wildly successful in the playoffs making the Eastern Conference Finals in 93-94, 94-95, 97-98, 98-99, and 99-00, making the NBA finals once.
While they never crossed the finish line and won an NBA championship, these were some of the most amazing Pacer teams to watch, and when many people all around the country fell in love with scrappy Pacer basketball.