Mark J. Rebilas – USA Today Sports Images
The Indiana Pacers had already been one of the most successful teams in the NBA this off-season. They were able to land the highly coveted Chris Copeland, were able to re-sign big man David West and also added a quality backup point guard in C.J. Watson. However, we found out on Saturday that the Pacers were not done making moves this summer.
On Saturday a deal was finalized that sent Gerald Green, Miles Plumlee and the Pacers’ lottery-protected first-round pick in the 2014 NBA Draft to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for veteran power forward Luis Scola.
Scola played in all 82 games for the Suns last season, averaging 12.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 0.8 steals in 26.6 minutes per game while shooting just 47.2 percent from the field. However, the 33-year-old showed a decline in his skills from previous season. He saw his offensive efficiency decline noticeably and seemed to have definitely lost a step.
However, Scola won’t be asked to play any more than 20 minutes per game with the Pacers. He will more or less come off of the bench to provide offense in relief of West and won’t be asked to do much more than that. For the Pacers, that’s actually a perfect addition for them.
Though the Pacers made it to the Eastern Conference Finals last season and took the back-to-back champion Miami Heat to seven games, they still showed some major flaws, one of which was their bench scoring. Though the Pacers have a solid six-to-seven man rotation, it was pretty slim after that. Scola changes that, though. He may not be a great defender, but he has the ability to keep the team’s offense flowing when the starters are taking a breather.
Some people may not like trading away a pick and a prospect like Plumlee for an aging veteran whose skills are noticeably fading. However, the Pacers are a team that believes they have the potential to make the NBA Finals now and Scola will help them in the present. In that regard, it’s hard to throw mud at this trade for Indiana.
Cody Williams is a Senior Writer with Rant Sports. Follow Cody on Twitter @TheSizzle20, add him on Google+ and like his Facebook page.
