The Indiana Pacers have been one of the most surprising teams in the NBA through the first half of the 2022-23 season. They are currently holding down the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of 23-19, which is tied with the sixth-place New York Knicks.
That puts the franchise in a peculiar position. Coming into the season it was widely believed that the Pacers would be a rebuilding team and look to move some of the veterans remaining on the roster. Instead, they could be changing course as their rebuild looks to have been accelerated.
Should they look to make a move to upgrade the roster ahead of the trade deadline, Indiana has the assets to build an intriguing package. Three first-round picks in the 2023 NBA Draft are certainly attractive, as the Pacers own theirs and projected late-rounders from the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers.
If they are going to include players, a surprise option could be Chris Duarte. The No. 13 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft is someone that the Pacers have seemingly changed course on according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports.
“And while the Pacers had marked second-year guard Chris Duarte as off limits in trade conversations with some opposing personnel, multiple front office figures told Yahoo Sports that Indiana has since made the 25-year-old available in recent dialogue.”
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Chris Duarte & Indiana Pacers Updates
Making Duarte available in trade talks after he was marked off limits as recently as the offseason goes to show how serious Indiana is about potentially upgrading the roster. Already turning 26 years old in June this year, it makes some sense that the Pacers would shop him around to see what kind of value he may have.
However, his production is down across the board as his playing time has been cut nearly in half.
All of his numbers are down, including his shooting percentages plummeting, which likely tanks his value as well.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Chris Duarte & Indiana Pacers Updates
But, a team in a rebuild that can offer him more consistent playing time on the wing could have some interest. Duarte and some of their stockpiled draft capital would be an intriguing package in exchange for an established veteran as Indiana has enough cap space that they won’t need an exact salary match to get a deal done.
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