Boston Celtics: Why Indiana can be good Cs trade partner

Tonight, the Boston Celtics take on the Indiana Pacers in the third game of this strange but exciting season. Danny Ainge should watch Indiana closely because they could be a great trade partner.

The Indiana Pacers did not have the satisfying playoff run the Boston Celtics had. Now, let me clarify by saying that falling short of the NBA Finals was not what made the bubble conclusion satisfying for Brad Stevens’ bunch.

Instead, it was the fact that the young Boston core showed that this could be a team that makes yearly visits to the NBA Finals once things have returned to normalcy a bit. Who knows if there will be empty arena games still by the conclusion of the season?

Either way, the Brooklyn Nets seem like a team of destiny–with the obvious injury caveat considering who is leading the charge–in the Eastern Conference in 2021. The Los Angeles Lakers seem likely to be the west’s representative after fortifying their roster in the offseason, but don’t sleep on how impressive the Los Angeles Clippers have looked either.

The conferences seem to be run by a few mighty teams, and a squad the Houdini all but guarantees will not be up there by the end of the season is the Indiana Pacers. After being swept out of the postseason’s first round by the Miami Heat down in the Lake Buena Vista bubble from Walt Disney World’s Wide World of Sports complex, the Pacers resigned several role players and made not a single move to affect their core.

Maybe health is all the team needs, but the more likely scenario of Indiana falling to the bottom of the conference could cause the team to consider making a move to either improve or to cut costs.

The Cs are the perfect trade partner to facilitate the latter option with their $28.5 million traded player exception. Armed with all of their picks moving forward, Danny Ainge can afford to give up a late first-rounder for the opportunity to add someone like T.J. Warren, Myles Turner or even the expiring Victor Oladipo in March when the Pacers are fighting for their playoff lives.

Prove me wrong Indy…just not tonight (or at all).