The Indiana Pacers are on the verge of upheaval. According to media reports, the Pacers are ready for trade talks. Accordingly, Caris LeVert as well as Domantas Sabonis or Myles Turner are available.
This is what Shams Charania and Bob Kravitz (both The Athletic). According to this, GM Kevin Pritchard is said to have convinced owner Herb Simon that Indiana should start over. The 87-year-old Simon is the long-running favorite among the owners and is known for avoiding a rebuild at all costs.
The reason given was always the difficult market in Indianapolis, as the fans allegedly would not accept a rebuild. With around 13,000 spectators on average, the Pacers are in last place in the audience table, which is said to have caused Simon to rethink.
So now the front court around Sabonis and Turner could be broken. Sabonis has been an all-star for the past two years, raking in $ 18.5 million. The Lithuanian puts on an average of 18 points and 12 rebounds, his contract runs until 2023. Turner’s working paper is also the same length. The center is one of the best shot blockers in the league and receives 17.5 million annually for it.
Indiana Pacers after a false start before the break?
The duo have been playing together for years, while LeVert only came to the Brooklyn Nets in Indiana last year as part of the James Harden trade. The 27-year-old has repeatedly had health problems during his career, the Shooting Guard missed parts of the preseason with an ulcer after the kidney. LeVert is in its second year on a three-year contract for $ 52.5 million.
On the other hand, Malcolm Brogdon is not available, the playmaker extended his contract before the season to 2025 and cannot be traded this season. TJ Warren, who has been out with a broken foot for over a year, is interested in extending his contract, which will expire in the summer. The Pacers want to be patient when it comes to trades, nothing should be rushed.
The Pacers are currently only 13th in the Eastern Conference, although Rick Carlisle’s team has a net rating of +0.5 (13th in the NBA). The reason is the many narrow defeats, Indiana has lost eight out of nine games in crunchtime moments. Between 2016 and 2020, the Pacers always reached the playoffs, the series only broke last year.
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