The Indiana Pacers may look at a trade with Roy Hibbert and other players like Luis Scola, David West or George Hill this summer after the major struggles over the second half of the season and teams like the Chicago Bulls, LA Lakers, NY Knicks, Golden State Warriors, Trail Blazers, Phoenix Suns, Pelicans and Houston Rockets all could be interested in making a deal with Indy.
The Pacers had a fantastic start to the season that vaulted them into first place in the eastern conference, but the team faltered down the stretch and in the playoffs early and now the team could look totally different next season. According to ESPN.com, the Pacers are willing to trade Hibbert this summer and Hibbert said that he would be open to a move, although Marc Stein writes that he has not demanded a trade and the Pacers have not fully committed to making a move yet.
Roy Hibbert had a horrible second half to the season and he disappeared in games during the playoffs and now the Pacers may look at trading him and players like West or Hill, as the team needs a shakeup heading into next season. Frank Vogel is set to return and Paul George isn't going anywhere, but other than that it looks like everyone else is in the mix to get moved.
Larry Bird knows that changes need to happen after losing to the Heat for the second straight year in the conference finals and this is now the third consecutive time that Miami has knocked the team out of the playoffs. Indiana went through the year wanting to get home court after losing to the Heat in seven games last season and they ended up with it, but it did not do the team any good. The Pacers were horrible down the stretch of the season and that continued into the playoffs, as they needed seven games to defeat the eighth seed in the Atlanta Hawks and they nearly lost that series.
Hibbert was one of the main reasons the team was playing so bad, as he put up multiple games without scoring or grabbing a rebound and those types of performances are the reason why he is being mentioned in trade talks. ESPN.com reports that Hibbert could get moved in a deal this offseason with two years and $30 million on his contract and while that could be tough to move for some teams, others could be willing to deal with the Pacers to get a player like Hibbert. Hibbert has a second year player option in his deal and that means he can be an unrestricted free agent after next season and that could make pulling off a deal a bit harder.
Last season the Pacers won 56 games and had the top seed in the east, but they need to score more and moving Hibbert could open that up for George. The team ranked 24th in the league in points per game and second in points allowed and in the final blowout against the Heat, George led the way with 29 points and eight rebounds. Hibbert had developed into a very consistent player over the past couple years, but this season and during the playoffs he looked like a shell of himself and that could lead to a trade for the Pacers.
