3 Players the Pacers could trade Andrew Nembhard for

Wednesday night provided a glimmer of hope and some extraction of revenge. The Indiana Pacers defeated the Boston Celtics 135-132 in overtime.

After winning the season opener, the Pacers had lost three in a row. Starting the new campaign at 1-3 is not favorable. Especially for a team that went to the Eastern Conference Finals and ended a four-year playoff drought.

With back-to-back losses of four points each, Rick Carlisle and his team are looking for answers already. The Pacers' head coach is in his fourth year with the team and expectations for success are higher than ever before.

The Pacers must consider trading Andrew Nembhard

Last year, Indiana suited up with the league's most efficient offense. They led the NBA in points scored, field goal percentage, and assists. That was large in part from the emergence of All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton.

However, his running mate in the starting backcourt, Andrew Nembhard, is struggling to excel in his own game. Back in February, the Pacers decided to deal starting swingman Buddy Hield to the Philadelphia 76ers.

This transaction netted little in return except opening up more minutes for young, hungry players like Nembhard. Unfortunately, after averaging 11.6% better from the field last season, he is barely scoring eight points a game shooting just 38.2%, a career low.

Here are three potential trade candidates for the Pacers if they decide to move on from Nembhard:

1. Julian Strawther, Guard (Denver Nuggets)

This player should look familiar to the Pacers as he was originally drafted in 2023 with the 29th overall selection. The former first-round pick may only be averaging 7.5 points this season, but he is shooting significantly better.

Strawther has made 60% of his shots including going 5-9 from behind the three-point arc in his first four games this season. While Denver may take on a player with Nembhard's talents and playoff experience after last year's breakout by the Pacers, Indiana would get an athletic shooter in return.

The Pacers need to improve their scoring if they look to resemble anything like their offense from last season or the two prior. Indiana has the seventh-lowest scoring average at 110.5 per game.

The former Gonzaga Bulldog played in 50 games during his rookie year last season. He averaged 37% from the floor.

Even if he is not ready for to be a full-time starter like Nembhard, Strawther would be an excellent option for the Pacers' second unit and Bennedict Mathurin could return to the starting lineup permanently in the 2-spot.

2. Josh Richardson, Guard (Miami Heat)

Though he sat out on Wednesday night, this player has been a newcomer on a number of rosters. After starting his first four years with the Heat, Richardson played for another five teams in four seasons before returning to Miami last season.

He has yet to play for the Heat but averaged 10 points a game last season on better than a 44% shooting percentage. The nine-year veteran is usually accountable for three rebounds and three assists a game.

Richardson may not even cost the Pacers a first-round pick to send Nembhard packing in a deal to South Beach. Their stats are comparable. Miami may want to upgrade their roster with a younger player rather than keep an aging veteran and role player.

A deal for Richardson brings the Pacers a nice compliment to their roster and locker room. This deal would implement a shift in the starting lineup to insert Mathurin and have Richardson come off the bench. This is something that he has become relatively comfortable with and unopposed to doing in his career.

3. Keldon Johnson, Forward (San Antonio Spurs)

In his seventh year in the league, the former Kentucky Wildcat is averaging 9.7 points and 5.7 rebounds a game. Johnson averaged a career-high 22 points two seasons ago.

Thus, any trade for him may cost the Indiana Pacers a first-round pick, too. Nembhard and pick deal for the Spurs' forward might even involve another body like Johnny Furphy or an additional pick to entice San Antonio.

With Harrison Barnes now in the Spurs starting lineup, Johnson's name could circulate in trade speculation even more than it has before. This could work in the Pacers' favor if they want to be aggressive about trade.

Johnson just turned 25 years old so age is still on his side. He is entering the third year of his four-year, $80 million dollar extension he signed. That is similar in terms of dollar amount as the three-year, $59 million extension Nembhard inked with the Pacers this past summer.

Haliburton and the Pacers may not settle on a struggling Nembhard with championship aspirations on their radar. The Pacers have been known to make in-season trades and at times, more than one.

If Carlisle's team experiences any more losing streaks before going on a winning one, expect Indiana's front office to be aggressive on the phones.