In early 2022, the Pacers altered the course of the franchise by acquiring Tyrese Haliburton in a blockbuster trade with Sacramento.
Two years later, the Blue & Gold made another potentially franchise-altering trade, acquiring two-time All-Star Pascal Siakam from the Toronto Raptors.
With Haliburton running the point, the Pacers are a team on the rise. They reached the championship game of the inaugural In-Season Tournament (with Haliburton making the All-Tournament team). After missing the playoffs the past three years, Indiana is currently just a game out of fourth place in the Eastern Conference, with Haliburton leading the league in assists and seemingly on track to start next month's All-Star Game in Indianapolis.
Now, Pacers President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard and the Indiana front office have found another star to pair with Haliburton. Siakam's resume speaks for itself. He was the NBA's Most Improved Player in 2019, when he became a full-time starter and helped Toronto capture its first NBA championship. He was a first-time All-Star and second-team All-NBA selection the following season, was named third-team All-NBA in 2022, and an All-Star again in 2023.
While the Pacers have done an excellent job in recent years in acquiring rising stars via trade (all of Haliburton, Sabonis, and Victor Oladipo became All-Stars after being traded to Indiana), the franchise has never traded for an established star still in their prime like Siakam.
There have only been two other times that the Pacers have traded for a player that was an All-Star the previous season — when they traded for Billy Knight in 1979 and when they acquired George McGinnis in 1980 (both Knight and McGinnis had previously played in Indiana).
The 29-year-old Siakam has averaged over 21 points per game for five straight seasons. He is a versatile 6-8 forward who is both an offensive playmaker and a skilled defender. Over 39 games this season, he is averaging 22.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists while shooting 52.2 percent from the field.
To highlight just how good he has been, Siakam was one of just five players that averaged over 20 points, seven rebounds, and five assists in both the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. The others on that list are Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Nikola Jokic. Elite company.
Whenever Haliburton returns from his left hamstring strain, he and Siakam will give Indiana two dynamic offensive options. Siakam should be a natural fit in the Pacers' offense, a great athlete ready to thrive in Indiana's fast-paced attack, and will also benefit from playing alongside arguably the league's best passer in Haliburton. Siakam's presence will also free up things for Haliburton, limiting the amount of attention defenses can focus on slowing down the Pacers' star point guard and giving him another elite scorer to shoulder the scoring burden in crunch time, distinctions that will be especially important in a playoff series.
The Pacers have not had two All-Stars at the same time since Paul George and Roy Hibbert in 2014. You might have to go all the way back to the 2000 NBA Finals team that featured Reggie Miller and Jalen Rose to find as talented an offensive duo as Haliburton and Siakam.
Defensively, Siakam's length and versatility will offer significant upgrades for a Pacers team that currently ranks in the bottom five in the NBA in defensive rating.
While this season was initially about just getting back to the playoffs, the trade for Siakam raises the ceiling for what the 2023-24 Pacers can accomplish. The Pacers have two All-Stars in Haliburton and Siakam, strong veteran contributors in Myles Turner, Buddy Hield, and T.J. McConnell, as well as several emerging young talents in Bennedict Mathurin, Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nembhard, Obi Toppin, Jalen Smith, and Isaiah Jackson. Under the direction of a Hall of Fame coach in Rick Carlisle, that is a group capable of making considerable noise in the postseason.
The hope would be that the Pacers are able to mount a deep playoff run this spring and use that as a springboard moving forward. Siakam will turn 30 in April and be an unrestricted free agent this summer. Indiana would love to find a way to secure his services long term, whether that's signing a contract extension or re-signing in free agency. Having success on the court and alongside Haliburton would go a long ways in those negotiations.
If Siakam remains in Indiana, the Pacers would have two stars locked up for several years (Haliburton signed an extension this summer that has him under contract through 2028-29), not to mention other key young players like Mathurin and Nesmith who will remain under team control for multiple seasons. The Blue & Gold would be in prime position to emerge as one of the East's true powers.
Siakam's looming free agency status will hover over this deal and ultimately determine the long-term success of Wednesday's trade. But this much is already certain — the Pacers took a big swing on Wednesday and landed another star. And that alone is cause for excitement in Indiana, where the future is brighter than ever.