The Indiana Pacers and Sacramento Kings completed a blockbuster trade on Tuesday.
With two days until the NBA’s trade deadline, the Pacers sent star big man Domantas Sabonis, Jeremy Lamb and Justin Holiday to the Kings in exchange for Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristan Thompson. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was the first to report the news. Sacramento will also get a future second-round pick in the deal.
Sabonis is the biggest name in the trade, but the NBA world was shocked to see the Kings unload Haliburton. The guard is averaging 14.3 points and 7.4 assists per game in his second NBA season. He has made over 40 percent of his three-point attempts this season and is still just 21.
Sabonis has been a double-double machine in recent years. He is averaging 18.9 points and 12.1 rebounds per game this year. There were rumors that he might wind up with a different team, but the Kings stepped in with the big offer.
Indiana is 19-36 and has little shot at reaching the playoffs this season, so the team is looking toward the future. The Kings entered Tuesday with a record of 20-35, but they are just two games out of the 10th spot in the Western Conference.
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