Pacers Considering Blockbuster Trade for Champion Forward

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Pacers Considering Blockbuster Trade for Champion Forward

The Indiana Pacers are eyeing a blockbuster trade for a champion power forward as their 2025-26 season continues to look further and further out of reach.

Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reports that the Pacers are considering a bid for embattled Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga.

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“Staying in the Eastern Conference, one team that has quietly been scouting Kuminga dating back to the start of the 2024-25 season and has continued into this year is the Indiana Pacers. Could there be a deal to be had between Indiana and Golden State, one that possibly involved Bennedict Mathurin?” Siegel writes.

Siegel notes that Mathurin’s athleticism could make him a refreshing fit alongside Golden State’s aging core of future Hall of Famers Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green. Of course, Kuminga is plenty athletic, too.

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“It does seem like the Pacers are wanting to sell high on Mathurin and former first-round pick Jarace Walker with their upcoming contract situations, and this is a team that won’t be spending more money or going into the tax any time soon,” Siegel notes. “That is why there is an expectation that the Pacers will move a contract like Mathurin’s before the [Feb. 5 trade] deadline, especially since they will likely get a top-5 pick in next year’s draft.”

Mathurin failed to come to terms with Indiana on a long-term contract extension prior to the deadline this offseason, and will now likely fetch a pretty penny in restricted free agency. The Pacers will have the right to match any offer tendered his way by a rival franchise.

A Fast Start for Mathurin

Through 10 healthy games for Indiana this season, the 6-foot-5 Arizona product has been averaging a career-best 21.1 points on .442/.397/.800 shooting splits, 5.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists a night. Mathurin was battling for a starting role during Indiana’s 50-win regular season and NBA Finals run in 2024-25, but questions about his on-ball decision making ultimately led Rick Carlisle to use him as a sixth man.

Two-time All-NBA Pacers point guard’s Achilles tendon rupture has compelled Carlisle to install Mathurin as a starter this year.

Kuminga, meanwhile, has struggled to fit in Golden State for years. A change of scenery may behoove both players.