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From the moment it became clear that Russell Westbrook and the Los Angeles Lakers were barreling toward a divorce, the Indiana Pacers have stood out as an ideal trade partner. The Pacers are rebuilding around young guards Tyrese Haliburton and Chris Duarte, and that has made veterans Malcolm Brogdon and Buddy Hield expendable.
Both are on multi-year contracts. Westbrook will be on an expiring deal once he inevitably opts into the last year and $47.1 million on his contract. Hield very nearly became a Laker before the 2021 NBA Draft. Brogdon likely would have been a deadline target this season if not for his contract extension rendering him legally untradeable until the offseason. Such a swap has been widely speculated about in recent months, but now, it is starting to look like a legitimate possibility.
The Pacers could indeed emerge as a possible trade partner for the Lakers, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, and they are expected to make Hield and Brogdon available this summer. The Lakers have two first-round picks that will be tradable this summer: their unprotected selections in 2027 and 2029. If the Pacers were to make this trade, they would have only a bit more than $30 million in salary on their books in the summer of 2023 before factoring in upcoming draft picks and a possible extension for Myles Turner. Swapping Brogdon and Hield for Westbrook could therefore net the Pacers not only significant draft capital, but meaningful cap flexibility.
The Lakers, meanwhile, would replenish their backcourt with badly needed scoring. Brogdon is the rare point guard adept at both running an offense himself and functioning off of the…
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