Latest Wizards trade rumor could give Pacers superb shooting target

The Indiana Pacers are in no rush to make trades. They have a great core of Tyrese Haliburton, Myles Turner, and Bennedict Mathurin and are set up perfectly to glide into the future with ease.

That said, Haliburton is clearly good enough to lead a competent team to the playoffs. So, if the opportunity presents itself, the Pacers could look to add more talent around him.

Well, the Washington Wizards could potentially provide that opportunity to Indiana, as they are reportedly shopping a few players, and one could be of interest to the Pacers.

Latest Washington Wizards trade rumor could give Indiana Pacers subperb shooting target in Danil Gallinari

According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, the Wizards are looking to trade a group of veterans that includes Delon Wright, Landry Shamet, and Danilo Gallinari. The latter of those three could be intriguing for Indiana.

Gallinari spent last season rehabbing an ACL injury. He was traded by the Boston Celtics to the Wizards this summer in the deal that saw Kristaps Porzingis join the C’s.

The Pacers have some decent forward depth, but Gallinari would give them a nice veteran presence at the position, as well as a different look than all of their current options.

As it stands, Obi Toppin, Jarace Walker, and Jalen Smith are the Pacers’ best power forward options. While Toppin and Walker will provide some athleticism, and Smith can shoot the ball a bit, none are even close to the three-point shooter that Gallinari is.

Even though he missed an entire season, the floor-spacing he’d bring to the Pacers lineup could be a very valuable asset, especially with a passer of Haliburton’s caliber leading the way.

On top of that, Gallinari could be a great mentor for the group of guys previously mentioned, as all are 25 and younger, and Walker is a rookie. And since Gallinari is going to be in the last year of his deal, it wouldn’t be a huge risk for the Pacers.

As far as trade pieces go, the best the Pacers could offer (or would be willing to offer) would probably be either Daniel Theis or TJ McConnell and a protected second-round pick.

That said, there’s a chance the Pacers would simply rather keep both of those guys around, as they have been in Indiana and are already solid mentors for the younger guys in town.

However, Gallinari’s skillset fits a bit better with the roster, so maybe the Pacers would consider the move. At the very least, it’s an intriguing idea for a Pacers team that should be looking for low-risk ways to improve their ceiling.