As it currently stands, the Indiana Pacers rank fourth in the Eastern Conference standings but could use a boost to become one of the NBA’s elite teams. One option for the Pacers to take the next step would be to pull off a trade for Charlotte Hornets star Kemba Walker.
Indiana could use more offensive firepower to bolster their scoring attack. There isn’t much better of an option to accomplish that outside of acquiring Walker, who currently leads the league in scoring with an average of 29.5 points per game.
For a team that has a relatively stagnant half-court offense, having an elite off the dribble shot maker from deep and mid-range like Walker would be a great match. They would have a backcourt of two talented off the dribble shot makers between Kemba and Oladipo, and that would be genuinely difficult for defenses to contain.
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Teams have often utilized drop coverage in the pick-and-roll against the Pacers because teams want to force them to settle for mid-range jump shots. A great benefit of having Kemba Walker running pick-and-rolls is that he is phenomenal at exploiting this increasingly popular strategy and particularly thrives at creating pull-ups from three-point range.
In addition to creating as a ball handler in the pick-and-roll, the Pacers would be able to use utilize Kemba in handoff sequences and as an isolation scorer. These are both areas that Collison badly struggles and is rarely utilized. Essentially, they would be potentially new dimensions to the team’s half-court offense and could go a long way.
The offensive impact that Walker can make goes beyond initiating playmaking sequences. He is a reliable catch-and-shoot threat in spot-up situations and even when coming off screens. While Collison is typically a reliable spot-up shooter, he does that at a low volume and his shooting mechanics prevent him from being a threat when coming off screens.
Let’s not forget that Kemba Walker’s ability to drive and finish at the basket and also convert on pull-up jump shots makes him a dangerous off-ball player beyond just catch-and-shoot attempts. Indiana would have far greater versatility with him in spot-up situations and when coming off screens.
Beyond just bringing a greater scoring impact, having Walker would enable Oladipo to be used as an off-ball threat more. That means that they would be able to utilize his athleticism as a basket cutter, create more simple opportunities in spot-up situations, and run more off-screen plays for him.
Something to think about is that the complementary players on the Pacers would benefit from playing with Kemba because of the focus that the defense is forced to give him. Beyond just catching the attention of the defense, he is more than just a capable passer and frequently exploits those vulnerabilities from the opposition.
While Kemba Walker is not known as being a great defensive player by any stretch of the imagination, there certainly wouldn’t be a decline in production by swapping out Collison for him. It is difficult to find a worse starting point guard at defense than Collison because of his inability to get around screens or to contain dribble penetration.
From a big picture standpoint, adding another perimeter star is key since teams are able to apply extra defensive pressure on Oladipo. The opposition simply does not fear the Pacers’ alternative playmaking options. It was arguably the most significant contributing factor to them losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the playoffs last season aside from simply facing LeBron James.
A great benefit of acquiring a playmaker of Kemba’s caliber is that it would not be advantageous for opposing teams to double-team Oladipo. If they did, they would leave themselves vulnerable by allowing the other playmaker to attack an out of rotation defense. The ultimate result is that Indiana would be a far more difficult team to beat in a playoff series.
It was believed that the Pacers would no longer be in need of a secondary playmaking option after signing Tyreke Evans over the summer. The situation hasn’t played out that way yet. Evans is only averaging 7.1 minutes alongside Oladipo and Indiana has produced only a 90.6 offensive rating within that time.
So far this season, the Pacers haven’t been playing Evans much just in general. He is averaging only 20.8 minutes compared to 30.9 in 2017-18 with the Memphis Grizzlies. Basically, the Pacers have viewed more as Oladipo’s backup as opposed to being a heavy minutes sixth man that is used in plug-and-play situations to bolster their playmaking.
Evans hasn’t been used much in critical late-game situations either. He has logged only one minute in what is classified as a ‘clutch situation’ so far with the Pacers, which ranks eighth on the team. For a player with his ability to create off the dribble and positional versatility, it’s odd to see him on the bench as opposed to making critical plays.
Perhaps the Pacers aren’t comfortable with Evans playing the point guard spot since he hasn’t logged a single minute at that position so far this season. If that is the case, then it makes sense for them to try to bolster the playmaking ability at the starting point guard position since they are choosing between Collison and Cory Joseph.
There is intriguing potential for the Pacers with Kemba Walker in late game situations. They could have a tough shot maker from the point guard through the small forward spot if they were to use Kemba, Oladipo, and Evans together if they wanted. Indiana would be able to pick their favorite matchup to attack since it’s very rare that a team would have enough proficient perimeter defenders to handle all three of them.
Thinking about the necessary assets that Indiana would need to trade away to be able to land Walker is difficult. The asking price would be high, especially after the report coming out that Hornets owner Michael Jordan is ‘hellbent’ on re-signing him.
It is certainly worth trying to acquire Kemba but it’s not an absolute requirement if the asking price is simply too high. The Pacers could make an offer to him when he becomes an unrestricted free agency this summer. Of course, that’s as long as the Hornets don’t already sign him to a long-term deal before he hits the open market.
There is no requirement that Indiana has to try to push all of their chips in this year. They already have a competitive team as it is but have a lot of their rotation players hitting free agency after this season. They will have the resources to make necessary upgrades to at least at a few positions and some of their young players could progress even further in their development too.
