The second domino has fallen for the Indiana Pacers on their quest to rebuild the roster. After trading Caris LeVert to the Cleveland Cavaliers over the weekend, they have now completed a deal centered around two-time NBA All-Star, Domantas Sabonis.
The Pacers traded Sabonis, Jeremy Lamb, and Justin Holiday to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield, and Tristan Thompson. The Pacers are also sending a 2027 second-round pick to the Kings in the deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
The Pacers said they were willing to make some big moves and this would certainly qualify. They are going all-in on the rebuild, and they may not be done making moves yet. Myles Turner is still garnering a ton of interest around the league despite the injury to his foot.
This deal with the Kings will enable the Indiana Pacers to remain competitive now but with an eye toward the future. Hield is one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA as a high-volume shooter with solid efficiency.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: This Kings-Pacers Trade Pairs De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis
Haliburton has looked excellent when given the keys to the offense in Sacramento whenever De’Aaron Fox has been sidelined and could be the long-term answer at the point guard position.
Indiana has done a very good job acquiring assets for the players they are moving on from. They are cleaning up their salary cap, acquiring multiple players on expiring deals in Thompson and Ricky Rubio. If they wanted, they could try and flip them for more draft compensation to a team looking to get out from under a long-term deal.
As for Sacramento, Sabonis fills a gaping hole at the power forward spot for Sacramento, who has a formidable core to push for a playoff spot with Fox, Harrison Barnes, and Richaun Holmes also in the starting five. The Kings are desperate to snap their 15-year playoff drought and Sabonis should help them do that.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: This Kings-Pacers Trade Pairs De’Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis
However, their willingness to include Haliburton in this deal is something that will be questioned for years to come. They were unwilling to include him in trade talks for months but pulled the trigger on a deal to get Sabonis into town.
This looks like a franchise that once again doesn’t have a true plan going forward on how to climb out of the doldrums of the Western Conference. The Sacramento Kings are now left with two smaller point guards in Fox and Davion Mitchell to build around instead of Tyrese Haliburton in the backcourt.
