Kemba Walker, Boston Celtics

Kemba Walker has missed the start of the 2020-21 NBA season for the Celtics after having a knee procedure done in the offseason, but he is expected to be fully healthy and return to action within the coming weeks. While Walker’s knee issues have long been documented and he has had several issues dating back to his college days at UCONN, he is one heck of a point guard and one of the better all-around point guards in the league, hence why he has made the NBA All-Star game for four consecutive seasons.

Adding another 20+ points per game type scorer to this offense in Indiana could be extremely dangerous and make them one of the better teams overall in the Eastern Conference. His abilities to be a true floor general and facilitator could be extremely valuable for the Indiana Pacers, especially since they have avid three-point shooters in Malcolm Brogdon and Victor Oladipo in the backcourt. 

Bringing in Kemba Walker not only makes a difference in terms of offensive scoring and production, but it makes both Malcolm Brogdon and Victor Oladipo better players. While both guys are solid facilitators and reliable ball-handlers, they are much better players off-the-ball.

Kemba Walker would immediately become this team’s primary ball-handler and allow the other NBA All-Star talents on the roster to thrive on the wing off the ball. Sabonis, Oladipo, Brogdon and Warren, when healthy, are all big-time offensive weapons and adding Walker to this mix gives them 5 legit double-digit scorers in their starting lineup at full strength.

If they were to make a trade for a guy like Kemba, Indiana would likely have to trade away Myles Turner, which would hurt them defensively, but for a team that has struggled over the years on the offensive end of the court, this deal would be hard to pass up. 

There are not many guards like Walker in this league and given his talents, he could not only make the entire starting five for this team better but the bench and role players as well. Aaron Holiday, Doug McDermott and Jeremy Lamb, when all are healthy, are three-point shooters, and with Kemba’s abilities to find them on the perimeter, Indiana could be a great shooting team come playoff time. 

At full strength with Kemba Walker leading this team, the Pacers would have a fantastic starting five and plenty of depth in their backcourt to make a run at taking down some of the better teams in the Eastern Conference. Indiana could not find a better offensive weapon on the trade market than Kemba Walker, making him a prime target for them should they look to add another star-level player to this roster near the trade deadline.