RealGM Basketball Wiretap

21 March 2023

• Tyrese Haliburton Out At Least Two More Games

  Tyrese Haliburton has missed the past three games due to knee soreness. It'll be at least two more games on the sidelines for Haliburton, per Rick Carlisle.

  Haliburton will miss Indiana's upcoming games against the Philadelphia 76ers and Charlotte Hornets. The Pacers have gone 4-12 in the sixteen games Haliburton has missed this season. That includes a 1-9 stretch in January.

  Indiana is battling for a spot in the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament. After a big road victory at the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday, the Pacers are just half-a-game behind the Washington Wizards for the final spot in the Play-In Tournament.

• Tyrese Haliburton To Compete In 3-Point Contest

  Tyrese Haliburton will compete in the 3-point contest during All-Star Saturday, league sources confirmed to Fieldhouse Files.

  Joining Haliburton in the competition is his Pacers' teammate Buddy Hield.

  Haliburton was named as a reserve for the All-Star Game earlier this month.

• James Johnson Re-Signs With Pacers

  The Indiana Pacers have re-signed James Johnson.

  The Pacers had to waive Johnson last week to create a roster spot to accommodate a deadline trade with the Milwaukee Bucks.

• Pacers Waive Serge Ibaka

  The Indiana Pacers have waived Serge Ibaka. Indiana acquired Ibaka at the trade deadline in a deal that sent Jae Crowder to the Bucks, while the Pacers got multiple second-round picks.

  Ibaka appeared in just 16 games with the Bucks this season. The veteran big man and Milwaukee had worked on finding him a new home ahead of the trade deadline, but nothing materialized. Ibaka will now try to catch on with a playoff team for the stretch run.

• Grizzlies, Pacers Offered Three First Round Picks To Raptors For OG Anunoby

  The Toronto Raptors kept OG Anunoby at the trade deadline despite considerable interest. ESPN's Bobby Marks said approximately half the league submitted offers to the Raptors for Anunoby.

  Zach Lowe detailed the interest in Anunoby from the Memphis Grizzlies and Indiana Pacers.

  "For instance, I've heard Memphis offered three first round picks for Anunoby," said Lowe on his podcast. "But Toronto made it clear to these teams like 'we want a player too.' I don't think that sort of player was on the table at least from their view at least in Memphis.

  "Indiana, I heard offered three first round picks and the Rockets' second round pick, which I believe they own in this upcoming draft. Which is almost like another first round pick.

  "But again, the player chip wasn't there for Toronto and they moved to fight another day."

  The Golden State Warriors also discussed a trade for Anunoby, but are not believed to have been close to discussing the details of a move.

• Pacers Acquire Jordan Nwora, Serge Ibaka, George Hill, Two 2nd Rounders From Bucks

  The Indiana Pacers will acquire Jordan Nwora, Serge Ibaka, George Hill, and two second round picks as part of the Milwaukee Bucks' acquisition of Jae Crowder.

  Milwaukee sent out five second round picks in exchange for Crowder.

  The Pacers will waive Goga Bitadze to accommodate the transaction.

• NBA Looking Into Incident Involving Ja Morant Associates Following Pacers Game

  Acquaintances of Ja Morant reportedly confronted members of the Indiana Pacers' traveling party following their game on January 29, with someone in an SUV in which Morant was riding in training a red laser on the group.

  Two members of the Pacers' group, who felt like they were in "grave danger," said they did not see who was shining the laser and believe it was attached a gun.

  "That's 100 percent a gun," said a Pacers security guard at the time.

  The Pacers reported the incident to the NBA, with the league probing the matter.

  "While we substantiated that a postgame situation arose that was confrontational, based on interviews and other evidence gathered, we could not corroborate that any individual threatened others with a weapon," said league spokeperson Mike Bass.

  The January 29 game featured verbal confrontations between several members of the Pacers and Grizzlies, with a friend of Morant getting escorted off the court after a situation between Morant and Andrew Nembhard.

  A spokesperson for the Grizzlies said that the team "complied completely with the league's investigation and are abiding by its findings."

• Jazz Want First-Round Pick For Each Of Mike Conley, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt

  The Utah Jazz are looking for a first-round pick for each of Mike Conley, Malik Beasley, and Jarred Vanderbilt, sources told Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports.

  The Jazz have discussed trades for each individual player, as well as Beasley and Vanderbilt together. The Hawks, Blazers, and Knicks have registered interest in both players.

  Nickeil Alexander-Walker has also been included in trade frameworks involving both Beasley and Vanderbilt.

  The Sixers and Pacers have registered the most interest in Vanderbilt, according to sources. The Blazers were also mentioned as a possible Vanderbilt destination earlier this week.

  The Lakers and Jazz have also discussed a potential trade involving Russell Westbrook in recent days.

• Buddy Hield Commits To 3-Point Contest

  Buddy Hield has committed to the 3-point contest at All-Star Weekend, sources told Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files.

  Hield is shooting 42.5% from three this season.

  All-Star Weekend runs from February 17-19 in Salt Lake City.

• Daniel Theis Hopes To Debut For Pacers This Week

  Daniel Theis has yet to play for the Indiana Pacers, after being acquired as part of the July trade that sent Malcolm Brogdon to the Boston Celtics. Theis has been rehabbing after undergoing knee surgery in November. After completing his first full practice with the Pacers, Theis is looking forward to getting some game action.

  "I got no pain, no issues right now," Theis said after practice. "I did some running for me. It was good for me and for the team."

  Theis recognizes he's not going to step in and play a big role for Indiana. But he believes that he can still help the Pacers as a limited-minutes rotation player.

  "I don't think I'm going to go out there like, 'Yeah, I'm 30 minutes,'" Theis said. "Whatever I can get. If I can get out there for five minutes and I can run up and down, I'll probably be exhausted anyway. You can't replicate game. Whatever you do in here, running, shooting, practice, but as soon as you go out there, it's so fast. Especially the way we play, I'll probably be good after three, four, five minutes."