The Indiana Pacers are looking to upgrade at point guard and a Goran Dragic trade with the Phoenix Suns could be an option, as the team is shopping Roy Hibbert this summer and Marc Stein reports the team dreams of a deal for the guard, as he would be a major upgrade over George Hill and this comes as the Trail Blazers and Sixers could be potential targets for Hibbert after Lance Stephenson signed in free agency with the Hornets.
According to ESPN.com, the Pacers have been "quietly" shopping Hibbert this offseason and the team has also been looking at options at point guard, including Dragic and Rajon Rondo. Pro Basketball Talk reports that the Suns do not want to deal Dragic, as he has a team friendly contract and is coming off of a career year, but they just signed Isaiah Thomas in a sign and trade deal and they also drafted Tyler Ennis, meaning they could afford to lose him. The team is likely waiting to see what happens with Eric Bledsoe before making any major moves.
Dragic would be a nice option for the Indy system, as he can handle the ball and run and offense efficiently and he would be a major step up from George Hill. The Pacers have been frustrated over the past two seasons by not making the finals and while Hill isn't the only reason why they haven't, he is a big reason why the team has not been able to get over the hill, no pun intended. Dragic is coming off of a season averaging 20 points and five assists and he also shot over 50 percent and he is looking to keep things going into this season and it could be in a different uniform.
Last season the Suns nearly made a move for Pau Gasol and they are still looking for a veteran up front and Hibbert could be a fit. The team has the cap space to make the deal and it also could open things up with what's going on with Eric Bledsoe. The team has offered him a four year deal worth over $40 million, but right now he is holding out for more and wants a five year max deal. The Suns are one of the best young teams in the league and after signing Thomas, the team could afford to trade Dragic.
Signing Bledsoe is a priority for the team and the Pacers now could try and use that to their advantage to try and get a deal done. Indy realizes that the east is no picnic and neither is their division, as LeBron is back in the central and Pau Gasol has joined the Bulls. That should be a three team race in the east along with Miami after they signed Luol Deng and on top of that, the Pacers lost Lance Stephenson and need that production to come back from somewhere else. The Pacers should still be a very good team and making a deal for Dragic would immediately vault them even higher and it could be the move that gets them into the finals for the first time in years.
