Pacers Viewed as Top Trade Fit For $45M Guard

Posted by Admin January 25, 2025 NBA

Pacers Viewed as Top Trade Fit For M Guard

Are the Indiana Pacers having seller’s remorse about moving on from Bruce Brown in the deal that landed them two-time All-NBA power forward Pascal Siakam?

Probably not, considering how great Siakam has been during his tenure with the team so far (although, in fairness, his pace doesn’t match his teammates’ approach to offense). But perhaps a Brown reunion could happen sooner rather than later.

In a new ranking of the top NBA talent being discussed as trade candidates (allegedly) heading into this year’s February 6 deadline, Sam Vecenie of The Athletic lists Brown as the 10th-best potential player who could be moved, and in a bit of a surprise, thinks Indiana could be interested in bringing him back to Gainbridge Fieldhouse for the home stretch of the 2024-25 season.

Hot off an excellent championship run with the Denver Nuggets in 2023, Brown inked a two-year, $45 million deal with the Pacers in free agency. He didn’t last long.

In 33 contests, he averaged 12.1 points on .475/.327/.817 shooting splits, 4.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.1 steals per bout.

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Brown has missed most of the year while recuperating from knee surgery. This year, the 28-year-old Miami product has only been available for 11 games.

“Brown is back in the lineup for the Raptors and doing his typical thing off the bench, providing tough defense, some ballhandling and sharp cutting,” Vecenie writes. “The only real flaw with Brown’s game as a role player is that he’s an inconsistent shooter who doesn’t get guarded regularly on the perimeter in catch-and-shoot situations. Other than that, he’s effective across the board.”

A career 33.8 percent 3-point shooter from long range on 1.8 triple tries, Brown’s efficacy has improved from beyond the arc this year. He’s making 36.4 percent of his 2.0 3-point attempts, still a pretty low output.

Because Brown is earning $23 million this year on an expiring deal, Vecenie observes that he could be a tough player to move. That said, Vecenie views Brown as a strong possibility to land with the Pacers, Los Angeles Lakers, Utah Jazz or Sacramento Kings.

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The 6-foot-4 swingman, who’s versatile enough on offense that he can function at either end of a pick-and-roll and multifaceted enough that he can defend point guards through power forwards, recently reflected on his surprise trade away from the Pacers last season.

Watch Bruce Brown’s defense on Jalen Johnson. pic.twitter.com/siwCmn8tjZ

— Esfandiar Baraheni (@JustEsBaraheni) December 29, 2024

“I’ve been in this situation the last two years, so if it happens, it does; if it doesn’t, I’m happy to be here,” Brown said, per Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. “It’s a business, (the talk is) going to happen. I was completely shocked last year when I got traded, so this year it’s whatever.”

Brown is a solid sixth or seventh man, but he can be a bit pricey. A team like Indiana doesn’t have a ton of mid-range contracts it could move in a deal, beyond the contracts of starting center Myles Turner (who isn’t going anywhere), reserve power forward Obi Toppin, small forward Aaron Nesmith, and reserve point guard TJ McConnell.

Nesmith, who is playing on a minutes restriction off the bench while recovering from a two-month injury absence, has ceded his starting role to Bennedict Mathurin for now. Mathurin played swimmingly in Nesmith’s absence, and may have earned a permanent promotion. Toppin is a solid backup big man, but he, too, may be expendable in a deal.