NBA Trade Idea Sends Mavericks Player, Hawks Player to Pacers

A three-team NBA trade idea sending a Dallas Mavericks player and an Atlanta Hawks player to the Indiana Pacers has emerged. 

Fadeaway World created the following trade idea:

Atlanta Hawks Receive: Daniel Gafford, Aaron Nesmith, 2027 second-round pick (via CHI)

Indiana Pacers Receive: Max Christie, Mouhamed Gueye, 2029 second-round pick (via CLE), 2030 second-round pick (via NYK)

Dallas Mavericks Receive: Onyeka Okongwu

The Pacers get Christie from the Mavericks and Gueye from the Hawks and part ways with Nesmith in this trade idea.

For Dallas last season, Christie averaged 12.3 points per game while shooting 44.1% from the field, 40.4% from beyond the arc and 89.9% from the free-throw line. He's a talented two-way wing. 

Meanwhile, for Atlanta last season, Gueye averaged 4.4 points and 3.6 rebounds per game while shooting 45.2% from the field, 30.8% from beyond the arc and 64.5% from the free-throw line.

The Pacers will be led by Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Pascal Siakam and Ivica Zubac this season. 

Indiana acquired Zubac from the Los Angeles Clippers at last season's trade deadline. Zubac, Haliburton and Siakam will be the Pacers' "Big 3" in 2026-27. 

The Pacers needed to land in the top four to keep their pick after trading it to the Clippers with protections for Zubac. The trade sent two of Indiana's first-round picks to the Clippers: one in 2029 and either this year's first if it fell outside the top four or a 2031 unprotected first-rounder if it did not.

Because the Washington Wizards moved up in the lottery, Indiana landed fifth, so the pick went to the Clippers instead.

The Pacers could have drafted AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer or Caleb Wilson. Instead, they have to pray that Zubac plays like an All-Star this season alongside Siakam and Haliburton.

Without the Haliburton, the Pacers won only 19 games last season. However, Siakam played well. The former Toronto Raptors wing averaged 24.0 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game and made his fourth All-Star team.   

One of the top players in the NBA, Haliburton had an outstanding 2024-25 campaign for the Pacers. He averaged 18.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 9.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.7 blocks per game and made the All-NBA Third Team.

Haliburton is averaging 19.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 10.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.6 blocks per game in a Pacers uniform. He signed a five-year, $244 million extension with the Pacers in July 2023.

The talented floor general will make $48,924,624 this season, $52,298,736 in 2027-28 and $55,672,848 in 2028-29, the final year of his deal.  

Haliburton has career averages of 17.5 points and 8.8 assists per game in the regular season and 17.9 points and 8.4 assists per game in the playoffs. The basketball world can't wait to see Hali play again. 

The Pacers may have won Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder had Haliburton not gotten hurt.

It was a cruel turn of events for Indiana. 

However, that's in the past and the Pacers are ready to shock the world again in 2026-27.