One of the biggest moves at the 2022 NBA Trade Deadline saw a surprising deal between the Sacramento Kings and the Indiana Pacers. With some peripherals on top, the core of the deal saw big man Domantas Sabonis moved to the Kings, with guards Buddy Hield and Tyrese Haliburton going the other way.
The trade was surprising as, while Sabonis's name had been mentioned in the rumour cycle, Haliburton's - the returning piece of note for Indiana - had not. It seemed Haliburton himself was caught unawares, too, as only a week earlier, after a 53-point drubbing by the Boston Celtics, Haliburton made an impromptu impassioned defence about how he was here to fight for the Kings, not be beaten down by their recent past.
The business side of the NBA, though, is forever ruthless. And within a fortnight of saying that, Haliburton - the team's best young player and a bright spot amid two more years of floundering - was gone.
To be sure, he was gone for someone good. Sabonis is the best player the Kings have had since DeMarcus Cousins was at his best, several years ago, and as the prospect of a sixteenth consecutive season outside the playoffs looms large - which would be the longest-such streak in NBA history - an upgrade trade makes some sense. After all, over those sixteen years, the draft model has generally not worked for them.
Haliburton, though, is one of the times that it did. And it is plausible if not probable to say that, now that he has arrived in Indiana, Malcolm Brogdon's days might be numbered.
How Haliburton Exudes Control
On the season split between the two teams, Haliburton has averaged 15.0 points and 7.8 assists per game so far, alongside a bevy of defensive statistics. In his seven games thus far for the Pacers, he has taken it a step further, averaging the hallowed 20/10 alongside two steals per game and a spicy .673 true shooting percentage - it is probably too late to move himself up in the race for the Most Improved Player award, but it is not in dispute that he continues to improve. And beyond the numbers, the degree of control he has over the flow of the game for his age is, in the best possible way, startling.
A pass-first point guard that would appeal to any self-identified purist, Haliburton combines a floor general's mentality and nuance of pace and position with a big frame normally associated with a wing. In terms of his break-it-down individual handle and ability/desire to create space in isolation, Haliburton does not have the mentality, moves, muscle or speed to do that regularly; however, give him weapons around him, free reign and plenty of movement, and he will pick his way through with excellent passing vision and rhythm.
Haliburton plays with pace on an otherwise-slow Pacers team, eschewing walking the ball up in favour of bringing it into the frontcourt with immediate intent to get things going. On top of all that size, length, confidence and IQ, he has also had NBA range on his jump shot from the off, hitting 41.5% from three-point range on his young career despite shooting from further and further away.
It has long been held that the point guard position is the hardest one to learn in the NBA. If that is the case, then, only a year and a half into his career and already putting in regular 20/10 games while carving through some of the league's best defences, Sabonis will not have been the best player in the deal for long.
To Pair Or To Part
If that description of Haliburton sounds familiar, it might be because it near-enough describes his new teammate Malcolm Brogdon, too. And Brogdon has noticed.
There does however exist one fundamental, insurmountable difference between the two. Haliburton is, as of today, 22 years old. Brogdon, meanwhile, is 29.
Given their long-established reluctance to ever tank or engage in anything akin to a 'Process', discussions about 'timelines' that would usually feature heavily in a look at an NBA team's roster construction strategy do not apply as much to the Pacers. Whenever they rebuild, it is by mistake, and for as short a time as possible. This in turn is also why they are more prepared to draft college upperclassmen (Tyler Hansbrough, Chris Duarte, T.J. Leaf, Aaron Holiday, Solomon Hill) than many if not all of their peers. If a player is good enough to contribute right away, that will do.
Perhaps that sense of immediacy played a big part in the decision to acquire Brogdon in a sizeable sign-and-trade deal three years ago. A surprising departure from the Bucks, the Pacers gave Brogdon $85 million and the Bucks three future draft picks to land a solid, shrewd, guileful and very Pacers-y starting point guard to shore up their immediate and medium-term futures.
Injuries, though, have been the defining feature of Brogdon's time with the Pacers so far. Managing only 110 combined regular season games across his first two Indiana seasons, Brogdon has only managed a 50% attendance record in this one as well, and while he has been an excellently solid quality starter when available (including cracking the 20 points per game mark last season), that availability has often been found wanting.
Considering the frequent absences also suffered by T.J. Warren, Myles Turner and (until he was traded) Caris LeVert, the Pacers' reluctant slide back into the lottery has been unavoidable. Considering also that Brogdon is about to turn 30n, and it makes sense for the Pacers - now that they have their ready-made young replacement in toe - to potentially move Brogdon on in the offseason.
Even with the injuries, Brogdon will have strong trade value. His similarly heady nature and good efficiency metrics, plus the ability to slide across backcourt positions and pair with any other type of guard, makes every other NBA team a conceivable suitor.
There is of course the other option, that of pairing the two up for at least one more season. Both have the nous to make it work. But Brogdon will have suitors, and the Pacers - with Duarte ready for a bigger role and a likely top 10 pick upcoming - will have reason to deal, before the returns start to diminish. Therefore, consider this one "likely", much more so than a trade of Tyrese Haliburton ever was.
