The Indiana Pacers will enter the offseason with a positive attitude as their season came to an end in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals. After missing the postseason for the previous three seasons, the Pacers made it deep into the playoffs this past season, and they greatly outperformed themselves.
The team advanced significantly after adding Pascal Siakam in the middle of the season. Regarding their club’s future, the team will need to provide answers to a few important questions before the summer arrives. Given that they need to thin out their backcourt, there’s a very good probability the Pacers end up making some roster changes this summer.
T.J. McConnell, who was a key member of the team’s bench throughout the playoffs, might be a part of that thinned out. Even though McConnell was excellent for the Pacers, if Bennedict Mathurin recovers from his injury, he might not be in the starting lineup at all the next season.
Would T.J. McConnell be traded by the Indiana Pacers?
In the event that nothing changes, Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Ben Sheppard, and McConnell will be the Pacers’ backcourt heading into the next campaign. Essentially, five players deserving of a rotation are vying for just four positions. And that’s assuming—which seems unlikely—that the Pacers don’t add any more players this offseason.
Indiana would want to consider trading one of their backcourt players for a player who can provide support on the wing or in the frontcourt. McConnell may wind up being the one utilized in this kind of transaction. McConnell, a respected veteran at 32, most likely doesn’t match the long-term schedule of the other key members.
His time with the Pacers is probably coming to an end anyhow, as he just has one year left on his contract. This is especially true given that Indiana will soon need to extend contracts for Pascal Siakam, Obi Toppin, and other players.
The good news for the Pacers is that there will probably be suitors if they decide to trade McConnell this summer. The Phoenix Suns are one possible landing location for McConnell, according to a recent rumor.
McConnell might become an attractive target for the Suns, a team in severe need of depth, given they were a team that shown interest in him in the past. And given his performance in the postseason, McConnell might be just what Phoenix needs this offseason.
