(Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
On Wednesday, the Indiana Pacers, after failing to come to an agreement with him on a contract extension, decided to look to trade Buddy Hield.
A number of teams are expected to make a run at him, and he could help a number of teams get to the next level and possibly contend for the NBA championship.
According to Shams Charania, per Stadium, the Pacers have “started a dialogue” on a potential trade, but they’re in no hurry to make one.
“Buddy Hield is open to a trade elsewhere, I’m told … both sides have started a dialogue on finding a potential trade. There’s no deal imminent.”
NBA Insider @ShamsCharania updates us on Buddy Hield’s future. pic.twitter.com/skgWGDq0PL
— Stadium (@Stadium) September 21, 2023
Hield is going into the final year of his contract, and if Indiana doesn’t find a deal it would consider satisfactory, he would become a free agent next summer.
Charania noted that he is the NBA’s leader in made 3-pointers in the last five seasons, ahead of even Steph Curry, and last season, he made 42.5 percent of his 8.5 3-point attempts per game while also averaging 16.8 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.
Many consider Hield to be a poor defender, but one can never have too much 3-point shooting, especially in a league where teams averaged nearly 115 points a game during the 2022-23 campaign.
The Pacers originally acquired the 30-year-old guard along with young All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton midway through the 2021-22 season for big man Domantas Sabonis, and it was a trade that seemed to give them a legitimate future.
If they end up getting a decent haul in return for Hield, that future could become a little brighter, especially if that haul includes at least one future first-round draft pick.
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