The Indiana Pacers are 10-15 and currently possess the No. 9 seed in the Eastern Conference. After making it to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, where they gave the eventual champion Boston Celtics their toughest challenge of the postseason despite getting swept, many Pacers fans are disappointed by the team's regression to begin the season.
Naturally, many have wondered if the Pacers will find themselves in the trade market this season to get a boost for the rest of the season, just like they did by acquiring Pascal Siakam last season. The trade deadline is still a couple of months away, and nothing is imminent. However, ESPN's Shams Charania recently shed some light on which areas the Pacers may be looking to address.
The Pacers are 'actively pursuing' a backup center, per Shams Charania
On Tuesday, Charania reported that the Pacers have interest in acquiring a backup center this season (subscription required), though he did not give any specific names.
"After losing centers James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson to Achilles tendon tears, the Pacers are actively pursuing a backup 5," Charania wrote.
The Pacers having interest in adding center depth is a no-brainer. In addition to losing James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson, each likely for the remainder of the season, the Pacers also waived their only other backup center, Moses Brown, less than a month after signing him.
Currently, Myles Turner, who has had a mediocre season himself, is Indiana's only center on the roster. When he is on the bench, the Pacers have played Pascal Siakam, Obi Toppin, and Enrique Freeman on occasion to play small-ball center. This is far from ideal for a Pacers team looking to turn things around soon.
There is the Pacers' biggest problem. Landing a backup center, while it is a crucial move they must make, will not move the needle enough for the team to become playoff contenders again. Trading for a player like Jonas Valanciunas, Robert Williams III, Clint Capela, etc., would be a positive addition, but none of these players will realistically be enough to turn the Pacers' season around.
The Pacers' main problem this season is that they are not playing remotely close to the team that made the conference finals last season. After averaging a league-leading 123.3 points per game in 2023-24, the Pacers are averaging just 114 points per game this season, 12th-best. Additionally, they are not playing with the same pace that made them fun to watch, and they have just the 16th-best offensive rating in the NBA.
Indiana is largely rolling back the same team from last season, which may give Pacers fans some hope they can turn things around on their own, but they are not playing at the same level, and things will likely get worse before they get better. The Pacers have many flaws that they need to fix. While adding a backup center would help, it is far from the ideal solution.