Pacers' Buddy Hield trade may be a good business move but is the team better?
INDIANAPOLIS -- As if they knew what was coming, Pacers point guards Tyrese Haliburton and T.J. McConnell made passionate cases on Tuesday night after Indiana's win over the Kings and Wednesday afternoon after practice about the value of Buddy Hield and the contributions he makes that not everyone understands.
They both acknowledged that Hield hasn't made as many 3-pointers this season as he usually does and that's led to a cut in his minutes. But they pointed out that even in a down year by his lofty standards, he still ranks in the top 15 in made 3-pointers, and for that reason, he has a gravitational pull that keeps his defender close to Hield rather than allowing him to cheat into the paint to cut off Haliburton or McConnell's drives. And McConnell in particular noted that Hield's eccentric but light-hearted spirit and obsessive work ethic make him extremely important to the Pacers' locker room.
But Hield has been traded at the deadline twice before, and he said Tuesday he would go into Thursday knowing anything could happen.
"It's the business of basketball," Hield said. "One thing is I always thank God I have a jersey on me. You always appreciate that somebody wants you out there. If it happens, some team is going to get a Buddy who is ready to play and is excited for new opportunities. Right now I'm happy at Indiana and just taking it day-by-day and we'll see what happens."
And what happened was Hield was indeed traded to the 76ers on Tuesday with the clear overarching motive on the Pacers side being, as he put it, "the business of basketball." Hield's four-year, $92 million contract expires at the end of this year, and the Pacers had reason to believe that if they kept him through the end of the season, they would eventually lose him for nothing. Their attempts to sign him to an extension in the offseason had failed and they would have less room to pay him this offseason with Haliburton's max contract extension kicking in and the Pacers certain to look to re-sign newly acquired All-Star Pascal Siakam, who is making $37.8 million this year and coming to the end of his contract.
The 76ers were in need of some offensive firepower with reigning MVP Joel Embiid out with a meniscus tear. Hield gives All-Star point guard Tyrese Maxey a shooter who can take attention off of him now that he's the focus of the offense. They still sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference -- two games ahead of the Pacers -- which gives Hield a chance to make it to the playoffs for the first time, but they desperately need some help having lost three straight and seven of their last 10.
The Pacers didn't initially get a whole lot back, but they used what they did get to at least replace some of what Hield gave them. The initial deal brought them forward Marcus Morris Sr. and guard Furkan Korkmaz and three second-round picks from the 76ers. They used Morris and one of the second-round picks to acquire Doug McDermott from the Spurs, giving them an experienced and prolific sharpshooter, though one not nearly as prolific as Hield. Korkmaz was later reportedly waived.
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McDermott is a bigger wing at 6-6, 225 pounds than the 6-4, 220-pound Hield. He's a little older at 32 and he hasn't been scoring at nearly the level Hield has. Hield is averaging 12.0 points per game after averaging 16.8 per game last year. He's started 28 games and played in all 52 of the Pacers' games this season. McDermott has spent the whole season coming off the bench, averaging 15.2 minutes per game. His 6.0 points per game are his fewest since his rookie year. In that limited action, he's shooting 43.9% from 3-point range.
In his career, which includes three previous seasons with the Pacers from 2018-21 he's a 41.2% 3-point shooter. Hield has shot at much higher volume, ranking 22nd all-time in 3-pointers with 1,842. McDermott has hit just over half as many 3s at 922. This season Hield has 137 3-pointers. McDermott has 76.
With another second-round pick, the Pacers traded for combo guard Corey Joseph from the Warriors but will waive him.
The Pacers' afternoon acquisitions soften the blow of the trade of Hield at least a little. McDermott might not score as much as Hield did, but can at least provide some spacing and gravity. The Pacers' younger guards and wings, including Bennedict Mathurin, Ben Sheppard, Aaron Nesmith and to some degree Nembhard, will get more minutes and opportunity with Hield moving on.
Still, McDermott is on an expiring contract just like Hield. So unless they re-sign him, the only thing the Pacers will ultimately gain in seasons beyond this one for having dealt Hield is a second-round pick. In some ways this makes sense in terms of basketball business, but after moving on from one of the 25 most prolific 3-point shooters in NBA history, it's still fair to wonder if the Pacers 2023-24 basketball team got any better on Thursday.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Buddy Hield trade: Why Pacers made deals with Sixers, Spurs, Warriors
