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The Indiana Pacers are in the middle of a crucial window in their rebuilding phase. Tyrese Haliburton, the crown jewel of their rebuilding effort, will soon command a max contract when he's up for a rookie extension. Thus, before that happens, the Pacers may be able to make the most out of their existing cap space and add an impact player when NBA free agency begins next month.
However, the Pacers, despite a promising 2022-23 season, cannot afford to blow their wad on a player who won't move their contending needle too much. Sure, making the playoffs remains the goal after the Pacers have missed the past two iterations of the postseason. But that is not the franchise's ultimate goal when they blew it up in mid-2022.
As Pacers fans know all too well, the franchise has been stuck as a middle of the road playoff team — with some spurts of true title contention in between — for the past two decades. That is a testament to how well run the Pacers organization is, but at the end of the day, building a sustainable, championship-contending team around Tyrese Haliburton is the ultimate goal.
Thus, hamstringing the franchise with a fat contract for a fringe All-Star, while helpful to their playoff chances for next season, may not be the wisest. Even though they could fill the team's gaping hole at the four with a major free agent acquisition, doing so may not be the best for the franchise's long-term health. In fact, they could just use the seventh overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft to draft a power forward — Jarace Walker or Taylor Hendricks both stand out as plausible targets at that range.
With all that said, here are two players the Pacers must avoid in free agency.
Kristaps Porzingis
Kristaps Porzingis' stock was at an all-time low when he was with the Dallas Mavericks, but he has mostly rounded back into form with the Washington Wizards since his arrival in D.C. in February 2022. Porzingis, the 7'3 unicorn, has been such a deadly offensive option for the Wizards, operating in the high post and shooting over defenders who need to set up ladders just to contest his shot. Porzingis has also remained a lethal threat from beyond the arc, and his sheer size makes him an imposing presence to score upon at the rim.
However, it's Porzingis' full-time move to the five that has simplified the game for him. Porzingis is oftentimes too fast of a cover for plodding centers, especially on pick-and-pops, while moving to the five has made his defensive duties that much easier, as he needs to cover less ground on the perimeter.
With the Pacers, however, that role will not be available to Kristaps Porzingis. As the Pacers have come to discover for three and a half years, Myles Turner doesn't exactly operate at his best alongside another center; both Turner and Domantas Sabonis flourished after they went their separate ways.
Adding Porzingis would give the Pacers some skill overlap; Turner also loves popping up for 3s as well as facing up on the block.
Reuniting with Rick Carlisle may not be the best idea for either party as well; Carlisle had soured on Porzingis at the end of his Dallas Mavericks tenure, and Porzingis' production suffered as a result. Paying upwards of $30 million per year for diminishing returns is never a good idea.
Make no mistake, Kristaps Porzingis is a talented player. But for the price he'll be commanding in free agency, the Pacers might be better off looking elsewhere to remedy their frontcourt woes.
Naz Reid
Naz Reid looks like a player who just needs an opportunity to showcase his entire repertoire to truly break out. However, the Minnesota Timberwolves may not be the team in which he gets that opportunity, as that team has committed tons of resources into the Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert frontcourt.
Reid's versatility could make him a target for teams in need of a scoring punch in the frontcourt, and the Pacers fit the bill. The Pacers also lack size in their frontcourt; they were starting Aaron Nesmith for majority of the season and Nesmith is a 6'5 small forward by trade.
In the end, however, Naz Reid is best suited at the five. At the moment, the Pacers have four conceivable rotation options at that position, namely Myles Turner, Isaiah Jackson, Jalen Smith, and Daniel Theis.
Adding Reid should help up the Pacers' talent base, but the 23-year old big man may very well find himself lost in the shuffle as well.
