Hibbert has been an integral part of Pacers success in recent years…
The Indiana Pacers are reportedly open to the possibility of trading center Roy Hibbert ahead of the NBA trade deadline on Thursday.
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According to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, rival executives around the NBA have revealed that the Pacers are open to dealing Hibbert, but no move is imminent.
Rival executives say that Indiana is open to trading Roy Hibbert. Nothing is imminent, but the Pacers would move him for the right offer.
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) February 19, 2015
It remains to be seen whether or not an attractive offer is made for the Indiana big man, although an issue that will likely prevent it from happening is the fact that Hibbert can opt out of his contract at the end of the season and become an unrestricted free agent.
With the possibility that he could up sticks and leave again in the summer, NBA teams around the league that are interested in acquiring him would in all probability prefer to wait until the end of the season to sign him in free agency instead of lose assets in a trade deal now.
Nevertheless, it is a departure from the initial approach that the Pacers were expected to take in the sense that they would stick with their current roster and wait for Paul George to return to full health.
The star forward has been out all season after suffering a broken leg in the build up to the FIBA World Cup last summer, but he is expected to make a return to action next month.
Instead of breaking up the roster and rebuilding completely, the Pacers insisted that they would keep their core together and go again next season, but if Hibbert is to leave then it could spark many changes at the franchise.
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