Pacers should get in on Damian Lillard trade talks after latest rumor

The Indiana Pacers are in a unique, amazing position heading into next year, and it could allow them to get involved in the Damian Lillard trade talks currently going on.

With Tyrese Haliburton leading the way, the Pacers are set to strive for improvement next year, but they also have enough assets to get involved in some dealings without shaking up their core.

Guys like Daniel Theis, TJ McConnell, and Buddy Hield are all on tradable contracts, which could allow the Pacers to take on some money in the form of players who better fit their long-term plans.

Indiana Pacers should get in on Damian Lillard trade talks after latest rumor

And based on the latest Damian Lillard rumors, the Portland Trail Blazers could be looking for a team like that to get involved. (H/t Scott Polacek of Bleacher Report)

"“But I think Portland, what they’ve been trying to do is see how they can put together multi-team deals that would get them the assets that they would want,” said ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski on NBA Today. “Draft picks, young players, there might be a team that their best asset is a veteran player that doesn’t interest the Blazers, but there’s a third team who might want to take on that veteran and then send, whether it’s a young player or picks in part to Portland.”"

Not only do the Pacers have a nice young core and some solid trade assets, but they control all of their first-round picks from here on out.

Throughout the entirety of the Lillard trade saga, it’s been clear that the Trail Blazers don’t want Tyler Herro in the deal. That’s where the Pacers should consider stepping in.

The general public’s outlook on Herro has drastically worsened throughout this process, but he’s a solid NBA player. He won the Sixth Man of the Year award two years ago and is still only 23 years old.

A backcourt of Haliburton and Herro may not be the best defensively, but the additional shot creation and off-bal abilities of Herro would fit well next to the Pacers’ star point guard.

But the truly enticing part of this concept is the fact that Indiana could probably get Herro for a fairly low price relative to his actual value.

If they threw Hield, McConnell, and a first-round pick into the mix, the Trail Blazers would probably be willing to re-route Herro to Indiana. McConnell could head to Miami while Portland would take on multiple expiring deals, allowing them to explore further deals at the deadline.

It may not be the perfect fit, but the Pacers should at least consider getting in on the Lillard trade talks in hopes of landing Herro at a steal of a price.