The Pascal Siakam trade makes the Pacers a serious Finals threat

Indiana managed to get Pascal Siakam, a two-time All-Star power forward, without touching any of their young core. The cost was Bruce Brown, their high-priced one-year free-agent acquisition, little-used Jordan Nwora and three first-round picks.

They've lost Brown, but he was likely gone next season anyway, given his team option for 2024-25 was for $23M. That means Indiana still has All-Star Tyrese Haliburton, All-Rookie first team member Bennedict Mathurin, two-time NBA blocks leader Myles Turner, last year's rookie surprise Andrew Nembhard and 2023 lottery pick Jarace Walker.

What Siakam gives the Pacers is a player who can punish defenses from keying on Haliburton. He's averaged over 20 points per game for five straight seasons, and is shooting 52% from the floor this season. 

It's not just Siakam's efficiency but his style that benefits the Pacers. While Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Aaron Nesmith take half their shots or more from three-point range, Siakam does most of his damage from within ten feet of the rim.

But that's not all he can do. After a horrific shooting slump to start the season, Siakam is 30-for-68 from three-point range since November, a 44% effort over the last 20 games. He's going to add a different dimension of scoring while preserving the Pacers deadly court spacing.

It's on the other side of the floor where Siakam can make the biggest impact. Indiana is giving up the third-most points in the league, and their biggest issue is stopping two-point shots — they allow the most in the league. 

They allow the fewest three-pointers, but only because two-pointers are so easy.

Not only does Siakam give the Pacers size and athleticism they currently lack, but he would allow them to cover up defensive weaknesses by employing more switching. 

Siakam can guard any position from point guard to power forward, meaning that Indiana can more easily hide poorer or smaller defenders like Hield on defense — while keeping their excellent shooting on the floor.

Indiana's super-charged offense could get even better with Siakam's power and playmaking — he's averaging 6.8 assists this season. If he can get them to become even an average defense, the Pacers can match up with any team in the Eastern Conference. 

They're haunting the Milwaukee Bucks this season. With Siakam on board, no one will want to play these Pacers in May.