Pacers Have Reportedly 'Backed Off' Pursuing $23M Wing Ahead of Trade Deadline

The Indiana Pacers have been on fire of late and have pushed themselves back into serious contention within the Eastern Conference standings. Indiana has used a strong push defensively to help them recently and it's shown some good results on the floor.
As we get closer to the NBA trade deadline this spring, the Pacers are expected to be very active in adding talent. The team has already been linked to several players as they have multiple tools at their disposal to strike a deal.
But it seems that one player that Indiana was targeting may no longer be on the radar of the front office. According to NBA insider Brett Siegel of Clutch Points, Indiana has 'gone silent' in trade talks for Washington Wizards veteran forward Kyle Kuzma.
"Both the Warriors and Lakers have backed off from pursuing Kuzma after striking deals for Schroder and Dorian Finney-Smith, respectively. The Pacers have also gone silent regarding Kuzma for the time being, sources said."
The Pacers have been linked to Kuzma in the past but it seems that it's old news now. Kuzma could help this team with his offensive game but his questionable defense does leave some things to be desired.
Indiana is likely looking elsewhere for wing help as they have potentially targeted wing Cameron Johnson of the Brooklyn Nets. Johnson has been the most talked about player in trade discussions for Indiana and there could be serious smoke pointing to something happening.
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The Pacers need some help in the frontcourt so adding another wing could be a moot point. But Johnson is a very capable scoring wing who can also throw in some defensive ability as well.
Indiana added Thomas Bryant via trade already but they still need more help. Bringing in another big man could be more of a priority for this team down the line.
It remains to be seen exactly what the Pacers will do ahead of the trade deadline but they seem active in different discussions. Indiana wants to build off the success that they saw last season so look for them to keep being mentioned in trade talks leading up to the Feb. 6 deadline.
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