Top 3 Players Pacers Should Avoid Trading For Ahead of Deadline

Fresh off a 136-98 Saturday revenge smackdown of the San Antonio Spurs in Paris, the Indiana Pacers have improved their 2024-25 record to a downright respectable 25-20 on the season, and occupy the No. 5 seed in Eastern Conference. They've gone 8-2 in their last 10 contests.

That's quite the turnaround from Indiana's 10-15 start to the year, thanks in large part to some improved health, the stabilizing of All-NBA point guard Tyrese Haliburton's offense, the improvement of swingman Bennedict Mathurin, and the All-Star play of power forward Pascal Siakam.

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All the same, the Indiana Pacers should think about making a move this year. Indiana plays with speed and shooting, but the team seems to need a bit more elite scoring help — and perhaps a bit more point-of-attack defense — if it wants to really compete with the Eastern Conference's two best teams, the 36-9 Cleveland Cavaliers and the 32-14 Boston Celtics.

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From Jimmy Butler to De'Aaron Fox, there are plenty of intriguing big-ticket names on the trade market worth considering (although those All-Stars would cost a lot in draft equity and salaries to acquire). But which players should the Pacers avoid at all costs?

1. Bradley Beal

The former three-time All-Star guard has quickly worn out his welcome with the Phoenix Suns. Beal's health issues, defensive woes, and need to have the ball in his hands to truly maximize his potential have made him an awkward fit next to All-Stars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant, both of whom can thrive on or off the ball.

Phoenix head coach Mike Budenholzer has already demoted Beal to the bench.

One-handed JAMMIN' 😤 pic.twitter.com/BVNl4nx2lE
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) January 26, 2025

Across 31 contests for the 23-21 Suns, the 6-foot-4 swingman is averaging 17.2 points on .485/.396/.764 shooting splits. The Florida product has been relatively healthy this year (he's only missed 13 games so far), but hasn't played more than 60 contests since 2018-19.

The 31-year-old is making $50.2 million — an exorbitant salary relative to his on-court impact at this stage, and probably even during his Washington Wizards-era prime — and is under contract through 2026-27, when he has a $57.1 million player option he'll almost certainly pick up. Most damning of all, Beal has a no-trade clause, so even if he did allow himself to be traded to Indiana, he would be prohibitively tough to move when that relationship inevitably soured.

2. Khris Middleton

Like Beal, the Milwaukee Bucks small forward is a pricey, oft-injured former three-time All-Star who's recently been moved to a reserve role by his new head coach.

Middleton at least can thrive off-ball and was a better defender in his prime, but he has lost some athleticism following a pair of ankle surgeries this past offseason. That has cost him on both ends of the court.

It's sad as hell watching Khris Middleton these days. He had a helluva run but it's OV. pic.twitter.com/eqvL34KS2q
— TJ (@TraMurr) January 26, 2025

Taurean Prince, his minimum-salaried replacement as Milwaukee's starting small forward, is the better defender and more efficient scorer.

This year, Middleton is averaging 12.6 points on .469/.366/.833 shooting splits, 4.8 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 0.8 steals in 23.3 minutes a night. The 6-foot-7 wing, 33, has missed at least 24 games a year since his last All-Star season, 2021-22.

He's making $31.7 million this year and has a player option for $34 million in 2025-26 that he will almost certainly pick up (he's not going to net that much on the open market if he declines it), far too steep a price to pay for an aging reserve who can't stay on the floor.

3. De'Andre Hunter

Hunter is another injury-plagued, expensive player who was once a top trade chip for the Atlanta Hawks. He has only The 6-foot-8 Virginia product is in a bench role this year, drawing a massive $21.7 million salary. In 31 healthy games, he's averaging a career-best 18.7 points on .457/.399/.856 shooting splits, 3.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 0.9 steals a night.

Hunter has had his share of injury problems. He has missed 25 or more games in two of his five completed seasons. He'll make $48.2 million across the next two seasons beyond this year.

DE'ANDRE HUNTER COMING IN CLUTCH💪

The Hawks erase a 30-point deficit to defeat the Celtics 🔥

🎥@BleacherReport pic.twitter.com/uGQujQYQnN
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) March 26, 2024

A solid two-way player capable of guarding either forward spot, Hunter actually makes some trade sense for the Pacers, and probably won't cost more than a lottery-protected first round pick to obtain. But his health issues make him a bit risky.

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