Why This Trade Makes Sense For The Indiana Pacers

Injuries have defined this Indiana Pacers franchise for years now as a roster that looks like a championship contender on paper has seen their dreams shattered over the years. Injuries to Victor Oladipo, Malcolm Brogdon, Domantas Sabonis, and TJ Warren over the years have limited what Indiana has been able to achieve and has led to five straight first-round exits in the playoffs. 

While Myles Turner has been a consistent player for them, particularly on the defensive end of the court, Kemba Walker is the player they need to be successful, which is why his time in Indiana may be limited. 

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 would immediately become this team’s primary ball-handler and allow the other 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. 

Giving up McDermott and Lamb in addition to Turner definitely will take its toll on the Indiana Pacers, especially in terms of off the bench production, but getting a player like Kemba Walker would be hard to pass up on as adding him to the Pacers would make them one of the best offensive teams in the Eastern Conference.