Pacers Linked to Overlooked Shooter in Trade Speculation

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jonah Kubicek | Last updated Feb 27, 2025 3:50 PM ET

At 33-24 on the season, the Indiana Pacers are one of the very best teams in the NBA. They hold the fourth seed in a top-heavy Eastern Conference, and are poised to make several playoff runs over the coming seasons.

However, they are not without weaknesses. This season, they are one of the very worst rebounding teams in the NBA and take the fifth-fewest 3-pointers per game. The league is quickly becoming addicted to the 3-point shot, and the Pacers need to catch up if they want to compete.

Luckily, a predicted trade target might help them solve their issues behind the arc.

Before the trade deadline, the Pacers were linked to wings like Cameron Johnson, Jonathan Kuminga, and, to an extent, Tim Hardaway Jr. before the Detroit Pistons really took off. All of those players will either be expensive or not even on the trade market, although Indiana could set its sights elsewhere.

"Barring a disastrous playoffs, though, Indiana figures to keep trekking along its win-now track," wrote Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley. "And if it does, then an established movement shooter might be the priority target. The Pacers were previously linked to Johnson and should continue to value his perimeter touch. (Corey) Kispert is more of a shooting specialist, but he should still get a look since Indy needs to crank up its three-point volume."

This season, Kispert is averaging 11.8 points on solid 37.1 percent shooting from deep. In Indiana's lineup, he wouldn't be a starter, but he could be a bench shooter, similar to the role played by Doug McDermott, or a poor man's Bojan Bogdanović.

The Pacers should be able to keep all of their first-round picks in a deal with the Washington Wizards for Kispert, and the sharpshooter might relish a chance to finally play for a winning NBA team.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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