Grade the Trade: Pacers land $179 million forward in 4-player mock deal

The Indiana Pacers have done a great job of setting themselves up for the future. Despite missing the postseason this past year, they have laid a great foundation.

With the addition of Tyrese Haliburton two trade deadlines ago, they landed a franchise player who looks to be fully capable of leading the way for Indiana moving forward.

But how long will they wait to surround him with more talent? Obviously, they have plenty of time. But they also have some solid trade assets they could package together in a larger deal.

Grade the Trade: Pacers land Michael Porter Jr. from Nuggets in 4-player mock deal

Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report recently wrote an article in which he concocted a trade for each team to get rid of their worst contract. For the Denver Nuggets, he deemed that to be Michael Porter Jr., and he chose the Pacers as a landing spot.

Here is the full outline of Buckley’s trade idea:

In September of 2021, Porter Jr. inked a massive five-year, $179 million contract extension with the Nuggets, of which he has four years left, including a partially guaranteed year in the final season of the deal.

From Buckley’s perspective, Denver would make this deal if they realize that their younger pieces aren’t ready to fill the holes left by the likes of Bruce Brown and Jeff Green.

In turn, they would be flipping Porter Jr. into a few different rotation pieces, sacrificing high-end talent for improved depth next to Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.

However, what grade does this receive for each team involved? Let’s find out.