The Indiana Pacers should stay away from trading for Trey Murphy III for this obvious reason.
With the NBA offseason about to get underway, plenty of rumors and a lot of speculation has already begun about the Indiana Pacers.
Kevin Pritchard and the Pacers' front office has already been very vocal about wanting to be aggressive during the offseason. They know how close they are to winning a championship and want to do everything possible to move towards that goal.
In order to make a sizable move, Indiana will need to get creative. The Pacers don't have much financial flexibility to work with, making a trade the more likely route if they choose to make a major move.
One name that has come up quite often as a possible trade target in Indiana is New Orleans Pelicans wing Trey Murphy III.
Murphy would be an excellent fit for the Pacers. However, the asking price for him will be high. In order to acquire him from the Pelicans, Indiana would have to give up a lot of value.
What would the Pacers have to trade in order to acquire Murphy? Most speculation has suggested that combo-guard Andrew Nembhard would have to be the headline name heading back to New Orleans.
Indiana Pacers Should Avoid Trading Andrew Nembhard
If that speculation is accurate, Indiana should have zero interest in the trade. Nembhard should be considered untouchable by the Pacers.
During their run to the NBA Finals, Nembhard played a massive role. He was solid offensively, but his aggressive perimeter defense was key against star guards like Jalen Brunson and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Trading him away would be a huge blow for what has made Indiana so good.
Nembhard is coming off of a 2025-26 NBA season that saw him and start 57 games. He averaged a career-high 16.9 points per game to go along with 7.7 assists, 2.8 rebounds, and 0.9 steals, while also shooting 44.2 percent from the floor and 36.1 percent from three-point range.
Aaron Nesmith is another name that has come up in trade rumors. Parting ways with him would be a tough blow, but shouldn't be a dealbreaker in the right trade.
This season with the Pelicans, Murphy averaged 21.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. He shot 47 percent overall and 37.9 percent from distance across 66 games played.
Should the trade require Nembhard being included, the Pacers should pass. On the other hand, if Nesmith would be the headline name heading back, the option would be on the table.
Expect to hear more rumors about Indiana as the NBA offseason gets underway. For now, the Murphy rumors continue on.
