The Indiana Pacers are still reeling a bit from their playoffs loss to the Miami Heat and that has sparked Roy Hibbert trade rumors once again after he disappeared for games in the postseason and the Trail Blazers and Pelicans are two of the top options and with the Spurs killing it in the NBA finals, Indy has to have some buyers remorse or regret about trading Kawhi Leonard to San Antonio for George Hill.
The Pacers signed Hibbert to a long term contract and after the way he performed in the playoffs this year he could be on his way out and according to ESPN.com, he would be open to a trade. The team also could be reeling a bit watching Kawhi Leonard play, as he has been tearing it up for the Spurs and he was drafted by the Pacers and traded.
The Pacers went 56-26 and won the east and their division this season, but that wasn't good enough to beat Miami and while the series lasted six games, that last matchup was a total blowout. After the postseason ended, many speculated that the Pacers would be making changes and after the way Hibbert disappeared at times during games could mean he is on his way out. Hibbert signed an extension with the team and looked like he was turning the corner as a big man in the league, but he had multiple zero points/rebounds efforts in the playoffs and that simply cannot stand for a team looking to win championships.
The Blazers are always an option for Hibbert after they tried to sign him to a four-year, $58 million deal that was matched by Indiana and now they could be lurking again. The team may lose LaMarcus Aldridge after this season without an extension and adding Hibbert could help mitigate that and would make a nice trio with Damian Lillard and Robin Lopez. The Blazers were 16th in defense last season and adding Hibbert in the middle could really turn things around and ESPN.com reported Marc Stein said that the Pacers would not oppose looking at Hibbert trades and the player's camp said they wouldn't be asking for a trade, but they wouldn't go against the idea of shopping him either.
The Pacers crowed all season about wanting home court and feeling they could have won against Miami last season if they had Game 7 at home, but that did not happen and now they have to figure out what's next. Looking back, the Pacers totally got the worse end of the George Hill and Kawhi Leonard trade and now that looks pretty bad, as PG is the biggest weakness for the team right now. Leonard would not be there obviously but if the trade did not go down it wouldn't be Hill.
Stephenson played in nearly 80 games in each of the last two seasons since playing in 42 in 2011-12 and from that season to the next he jumped from 10 minutes per game to 29 minutes and he averaged two points, to eight points and now he is in the double digits. Stephenson can create his own shot and is a dynamic player, but his mental issues and immaturity may keep him from becoming as great as he can be and that is one frustrating aspect of his time with the Pacers. The Pacers had a very rough stretch at the end of the season and part of that apparently was on Stephenson and now he likely will be on his way out of town after the season. Stephenson has supreme talent and the Pacers know that he can take over games, but at times he can make some major mistakes, including when he called out LeBron James before Game 4 and that turned out terribly for the Pacers.
