What a Lakers-Pacers trade around Russell Westbrook looks like

Why the Indiana Pacers could say yes to this Russell Westbrook trade:

Prior to the offseason, I would not have given the Pacers any chance of making this trade. It seems like the team would be able to get more for both Buddy Hield and Myles Turner than a Westbrook salary dump and a valuable future first.

However, the Malcolm Brogdon trade changes everything. While Brogdon does have his injury concerns that hurt his value, he was still the most valuable asset that the Pacers had to trade. All Indiana got from Boston was a 2023 first-round pick that will be in the 20s and a bunch of contracts that don’t really matter.

The most promising player in the deal was Aaron Nesmith. Let that sink in.

That deal not only indicated that the value of Hield and Turner may not be that high but that the Pacers are willing to commit to this Victor Wembanyama tank job while also allowing Tyrese Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin ample playing time to develop. Heck, Mathurin said he was better than LeBron James, so maybe they have a plan.

That Lakers’ future first-round pick is a valuable commodity in the NBA and the Pacers would be able to get off of Hield’s multi-year contract. While Indiana would be taking on $7.1 million more in salary, the team could work out a buyout with Westbrook that would essentially negate that extra money on the books.

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This feels like a trade that is more likely to happen at the trade deadline as a Westbrook buyout would be far cheaper for Indiana. That being said, several teams have already made it clear they are tanking for Wembanyama, so the Pacers are better off acting now.