Acquiring this popular trade candidate would fix the Pacers' 2 biggest flaws

The Indiana Pacers are a solid team, but they are far from flawless. They are an elite offensive team (even if they are in a bit of a rut to begin the 2024-25 NBA season), but they are a below-average rebounding and defensive team. The Pacers have a fun and exciting roster that should only continue to get better, but that does not mean they should settle with the roster they have.

Indiana has many notable homegrown players making an impact on the team currently. This includes Myles Turner, Bennedict Mathurin, and Andrew Nembhard. However, they made the conference finals last year in large part due to players they acquired in trades, such as Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam, and Aaron Nesmith.

While there is nothing cooking up in the rumor mill as it stands, there are plenty of realistic trade targets the Pacers should pursue, and one of them may be available right away.

Indiana Pacers should trade for Robert Williams III from the Portland Trail Blazers

The Trail Blazers trading Robert Williams III away seems inevitable. Regardless of whether it happens this season or in the summer, the Texas A&M alum will likely find himself on a new team to start the 2025-26 NBA season.

In addition to Williams, the Trail Blazers have Deandre Ayton and rookie Donovan Clingan at center. Realistically, the Trail Blazers will not move on from Clingan any time soon, meaning they will likely trade either Williams or Ayton. Given Williams' team-friendly contract, he is more likely to go.

Portland acquired Williams from the Boston Celtics last year as part of the Jrue Holiday trade. In his first season with the Trail Blazers, Williams only played in six games due to a season-ending right knee injury. After a year away from basketball, "Timelord" made his on-court return last week and looks incredible.

Through three games, Williams is averaging 12 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.7 blocks. Additionally, he is shooting 78.9% from the field and hit the first three-point field goal of his career in his season debut. However, as most know, the 27-year-old's bread and butter is his elite defensive prowess.

At his peak with the Celtics, Williams was one of the best defensive players in the league. Additionally, he remains an elite paint presence and is extremely versatile. Williams played a huge role in Boston's NBA Finals run in 2022. When healthy, he is a legitimate defensive anchor, something the Pacers desperately need.

Unfortunately for Williams, "when healthy" is used way too often when discussing his presence in the NBA. There is no denying that he is a game-changer, but his health is a genuine concern and has been since joining the league in 2018. Regardless, his upside is way too good to overlook, and he would elevate the Pacers on both sides of the court immensely. Furthermore, this trade would reunite him with Nesmith, who was his teammate in Boston for a few seasons.

Though the Pacers are not necessarily linked to Williams, MassLive's Brian Robb wrote about teams that could have interest in the Louisiana native. While he did not mention the Pacers directly, it sure sounds like they are a team he is referring to.

"The Blazers continue to have a logjam at center and Williams is playing well enough in his first week back healthy to catch team’s eyes again. A playoff team looking for a boost in the middle could roll the dice on him although his health always makes it a bit of a risk. The Lakers have already been linked to him as a potential suitor but there are a host of East teams that could use him in the middle," Robb wrote.

Trading for Williams would be a high-risk, high-reward move for Indiana. Whether they need to make this kind of deal remains to be seen. However, there is no doubt he is exactly the type of player they need. Only time will tell what happens with Williams, but it would not be a shock if the Pacers find themselves in his sweepstakes in the near future.