Pacers' Top 3 Trade Targets for This Season Revealed

Bleacher Report's Dan Favale believes it's never too early to talk about NBA trades. 

With that said, Favale identified three trade targets for every team. 

For the Indiana Pacers, Favale listed Yves Missi of the New Orleans Pelicans, Jaylin Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Jordan Walsh of the Boston Celtics. 

The Pacers went 19-63 last season. They had the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference. 

Things will be a lot different this season, though, as Tyrese Haliburton is back after missing all of last season recovering from his Achilles tendon tear. 

Bleacher Report believes the Pacers will go 46-36 this season. That would be a very strong record. 

One of the top floor generals 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 team in July 2023.

The talented playmaker 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.  

Indiana is expected to start Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam and Ivica Zubac this season. That's a powerful starting five on paper. 

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 is certainly glad that Haliburton is back.

The Pacers may have won Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals against the 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.

It's safe to say that Haliburton will never forget October 7, 2026. Haliburton not only made his return to the NBA, but he also did it at his alma mater. 

The Pacers faced the Minnesota Timberwolves at Iowa State. Haliburton purchased tickets for the student section and the university held a lottery for people to attend.

Haliburton spent two years at Iowa State from 2018 to 2020 before being selected in the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft. His college years have remained significant to him. He met his now-wife, Jade, during his time at Iowa State and proposed to her on Iowa State's court when the two got engaged.

The Pacers open this season on the road against the New Orleans Pelicans. The home opener is against the Dallas Mavericks. 

Haliburton, who looked really good this preseason, will get a loud ovation from the Pacers crowd that night.