Proposed 3-Team NBA Trade to Strengthen Two Eastern Conference Contenders.Giang

The Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers returned to the playoffs this past season, tied at 47 wins. The Magic fell in seven to the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the Pacers made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals before bowing out in four to the Boston Celtics.

Both teams hope to improve but have minor holes to fix before the 2024-25 postseason. Perhaps they can help each other before training camps start, with some help from the rebuilding Brooklyn Nets,

The following three-team suggestion could be a way to give the two playoff hopefuls a better chance to advance while giving the Nets a young player to develop:

Magic get:

• Dorian Finney-Smith (from Nets)
• Isaiah Jackson (from Pacers)
• $2 million trade exception (Caleb Houstan)

Pacers get:

• Wendell Carter Jr. (from Magic)

Nets get:

• Jarace Walker (from Pacers)
• Caleb Houstan (from Magic)
• $14.9 million trade exception (Finney-Smith)

The Magic have several players with size, enough to give up their starting center to the Pacers.

With a resurgent season, Jonathan Issac can play alongside Paolo Banchero in the starting lineup. Orlando also has Mo Wagner and Goga Bitadze (along with Jackson incoming from Indiana) as quality rotational players. There’s also an argument that Banchero needs minutes at the 5.

The Magic are relatively thin at forward, especially defensively. Looking at Orlando’s last two offseasons (Joe Ingles last year, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope this year), Finney-Smith fits that veteran mold perfectly as a wing defender/floor-spreader.

Orlando must consider its long-term finances, with Jalen Suggs looking for an extension this summer and Banchero due next year. Finney-Smith ($15.4 million, player option) should fit within the team’s budget for 2025-26.

Houstan is in the deal to Brooklyn to help Orlando make the necessary roster space for Finney-Smith and Jackson.

It’s no small thing for the Pacers to give up their No. 8 pick in 2023, but Walker needs a lot of time on the court to develop. He could become an impact power forward, but he won’t get much chance behind Pascal Siakam and Obi Toppin.

Carter has a team-friendly contract at $12 million this season and $10.9 million next. He’s still just 25, but at 6’10”, 270 pounds, he would give the Pacers a bigger, stronger backup to Myles Turner (who is in the last year of his contract).

Indiana also loses center Isaiah Jackson, who is extension-eligible this summer. While he’s active and athletic, Jackson (6’9″, 205 lbs) doesn’t have nearly the same heft as Carter, who better fills the team’s rotational need than Jackson and Walker.

The Pacers need to return to the minimum of 14 standard contracts, but the team is awfully close to the NBA’s $170.8 million luxury tax threshold. The best way to stay under would probably be converting Enrique Freeman or Tristen Newton.

Both were drafted in the second round and signed two-way contracts, but they would only count against the tax at almost $1.2 million. A non-drafted rookie minimum would earn the same salary but would be almost $2.1 million against the tax.

Assuming the team keeps James Wiseman and James Johnson, the Pacers should be about $211,000 below the tax (though current unlikely incentives for T.J. McConnell, Turner and Toppin could put them over).

At 31, Finney-Smith no longer fits the Nets’ timeline, which seems to be restarting. Brooklyn traded Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks and may be getting out of many of its remaining veteran players to build around youth.

Walker, who just turned 21, fits that perfectly. He was highly regarded out of Houston in the deep 2023 draft class. He played only 10.3 minutes a game (23 games total) as a rookie, which would not be an issue in Brooklyn.

The Nets could prioritize his development, paired with recently re-signed center Nic Claxton. The opportunity cost for Finney-Smith would be potential draft compensation a different contender might offer. Assuming Brooklyn can get a first, the likelihood that a future drafted player has Walker’s tangible potential is slim.

Brooklyn also gets a look at Houstan, but he would need to beat out Keon Johnson, Jalen Wilson or another fully-guaranteed player before opening night—or the Nets can send out someone else via trade to get to the maximum of 15.