The Kings are trading guards Tyrese Haliburton and Buddy Hield, and center Tristan Thompson to the Pacers for power forward Domantas Sabonis, shooting guard Jeremy Lamb and guard/forward Justin Holiday, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
This marks the second major deal of the week for Indiana, which traded guard/forward Caris LeVert to the Cavaliers on Monday.
The centerpieces to this particular trade are Haliburton and Sabonis, who is one year removed from an All-Star appearance. Both the Pacers and Kings were looking for a shakeup, and this deal will certainly qualify.
It was also an interesting move away from Haliburton for the Kings, who were said to be determined to keep him. Instead, they will continue to move forward with De’Aaron Fox as their lead guard.
The Pacers are also sending a 2027 second-round pick in the deal, Wojnarowski added.
One thing is for certain: Indiana GM Chad Buchanan is remaking the roster and will now have a guard contingent that features Haliburton, Hield, Malcolm Brogdon and rookie Chris Duarte.
As James Boyd of the Indianapolis Star pointed out, “This is Indiana’s second trade this week, signifying that owner Herb Simon is ready to commit to a full rebuild.”
For Sacramento, Sabonis and Fox are excellent starting points for a franchise that needed a shot in the arm. It is believed the Kings could still potentially trade small forward Harrison Barnes ahead of Thursday’s deadline.
“Sabonis, 25, is averaging 18.9 points, 12.1 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.0 blocks for the Pacers this season,” wrote Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee. “Sabonis is in the second year of a four-year, $74.9 million deal. He is owed $18.5 million next season and $19.4 million in 2023-24.”
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