Indiana Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan wants Buddy Hield to return for the 2023-24 NBA season. Following unsuccessful extension talks between both sides last week, Hield informed the Pacers that he’s open to a trade. Indiana brass remains optimistic that he’ll rescind his trade request.

Last Saturday, the Dallas Mavericks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Milwaukee Bucks were reported as the teams interested in trading for the 6-foot-4 guard. Hield, 30, is entering the final season of the four-year, $94 million contract he signed with the Sacramento Kings in 2019.

Per multiple NBA betting sites, the Indiana Pacers hold 10th-best odds to win next season’s championship in 2024. Check out which sportsbooks are showing better odds for the Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors, and Los Angeles Clippers.

Pacers GM Chad Buchanan on the Buddy Hield situation: pic.twitter.com/V1tF2ocJfG

— Tony East (@TonyREast) September 26, 2023

On Tuesday, Buchanan opened up on the Hield situation. “Buddy is someone that we love having on our team, we want him on our team this year,” he said. “The business of basketball comes into play at times, we’ve had talks with him about an extension and those talks are at a half right now. That’s not to say that they’re done.

“We’d like to have Buddy with us, we have no intention of trying to move Buddy, but it’s also our job to listen if opportunities come that help us improve the team. That’s what we have to do as a front office. But our intention is to have Buddy on the team this year and have him be a big part of our group.”

Indiana Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan wants to retain Buddy Hield for the 2023-24 season, believes the former Sacramento King will sign a new extension with Indiana

According to a few NBA insiders, Hield is willing to play for any team.

“Hield is open to a trade elsewhere, according to rival team sources, but no deal is imminent and there aren’t any current substantive talks with any other team,” Charania reported last week.

“The Pacers did offer Hield an extension in recent weeks, but it’s believed their proposal did not make the seven-year guard feel desired, league sources said.”

In February 2022, Sacramento traded Buddy Hield and Tyrese Haliburton to the Pacers for Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb, Domantas Sabonis, and a 2023 second-round draft pick.

𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: The Indiana Pacers would prefer picks over players in a Buddy Hield trade (obviously they would have to get a player or two to match salary), per Marc Stein.

They want to free up minutes for their young talent at the SG/SF positions… This makes a deal with the… pic.twitter.com/AlYFzsC3Y5

— TheBucksZone (@TheBucksZoneIG) September 25, 2023

Hield made 73 starts in 80 games of the 2022-23 season, averaging 16.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals, and 31 minutes per game. Moreover, he shot 45.8% from the floor, 42.5% beyond the arc, and 82.2% at the foul line.

In Indiana’s 119-113 loss to the New York Knicks on Jan. 11, 2023, Hield recorded a season-high 31 points, eight boards, and one steal in 33 minutes as a starter. He finished 11-of-20 (55%) shooting from the field and knocked down seven 3-pointers.

The Pacers guard finished second in 3-pointers (288) last season behind only Golden State veteran Klay Thompson (301). Hield’s 3-point shooting percentage (42.5%) also ranked ninth overall.

Needless to say, Chad Buchanan has his work cut out for him right now.

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There is a chance that Damian Lillard will not be playing for the Miami Heat after all. A new team has emerged as a favorite to trade for the All-Star guard. That is the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors are an interesting team due to their promising youth. While no trade is imminent, players such as All-Star, Pascal Siakam, along with Scottie Barnes, O.G. Anunoby, Gradey Dick, and other future draft picks could be an enticing offer for the Portland Trail Blazers.

This is certainly more intriguing for Portland compared to the package offered by Miami centered around Tyler Herro and a couple of draft picks. Lillard is still wanting to go to Miami, but he may be headed north if the Raptors put together a good enough package.

Toronto Raptors Emerge as Leading Candidate to Land Damian Lillard

Damian Lillard’s Potential Impact on Toronto

Damian Lillard on the Raptors would be very interesting. He would instantly elevate them to a top-six seed in the Eastern Conference (if he plays for them that is) and could serve as a lure for future star free agents. Stars such as Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Raptors are a scrappy team that is need of a veteran leader.

Lillard would fill that void, especially with Fred VanVleet departing for Houston this offseason. While Lillard would be the only star on the Raptors for a season if this were to happen, the possibility of him luring an MVP candidate to Toronto in the future has to be enticing. While Lillard only wants to play for the Heat, he may want to give the Raptors some consideration.

Other Teams Interested in the Star Point Guard

There are other teams vying for the services of Damian Lillard. Obviously, the Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat are the favorites to land the star guard right now. However, the Chicago Bulls, Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, and the Milwaukee Bucks have also shown interest in Lillard.

Yes, Lillard only wants to go to Miami, but at the end of the day, the Portland Trail Blazers are going to do what is best for their franchise. They owe it to their fan base to accept the best package going forward whether it upsets Damian Lillard or not. All in all, the Lillard sweepstakes are heating up as we get closer to the new NBA season.

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Jrue Holiday has no retirement plans in the foreseeable future, and the two-time All-Star is also interested in playing the remainder of his NBA career with the Milwaukee Bucks. Holiday, 33, hopes to sign an extension this winter.

“Would love to,” he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel in a recent interview. “Before I even won here, I think I said I’m a Buck for life and I mean that like deep in my heart. I don’t want to play for any other team.

“I think we have a chance to continue to do great things as the Bucks team and organization, so I want to be in Milwaukee. … No, I don’t plan on retiring. I don’t plan on retiring.”

Referring to a couple of NBA betting sites, the Milwaukee Bucks hold fourth-shortest odds to win next season’s championship in 2024. Sportsbooks are showing better odds for the Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, and Phoenix Suns.

Jrue Holiday says he wants to retire a Milwaukee Buck

“I don’t want to play for any other team. I think we have a chance to continue to do great things as the Bucks team and organization so I want to be in Milwaukee.”

(Via Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) pic.twitter.com/T9OFUf7neU

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 26, 2023

“Just them being my friends and we’ve talked about stages in basketball and sometimes you go through modes or hard spots where like, even with my family, maybe the best thing to do is retire or even just being tired and being exhausted, playing a lot of basketball,” Jrue Holiday added. “But no. My answer is no, I’m not retiring.”

The 6-foot-3 guard was selected 17th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2009 NBA Draft out of UCLA. The five-time All-Defensive member spent his first four seasons (2009-13) with the Sixers and next seven (2013-20) with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Jrue Holiday plans to spend rest of NBA career with the Milwaukee Bucks, hopes to sign a new extension this winter

In November 2020, the Pelicans traded the California native to the Bucks.

Last season, Holiday made 65 starts in 67 appearances with Milwaukee in 2022-23. He averaged a career-high 19.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 7.4 assists, and 1.2 steals per game.

Moreover, the guard reached the minimum number of games threshold to receive a $331,000 bonus. Additionally, the incentive is part of the four-year, $135 million contract the 14-year veteran signed with Milwaukee in April 2021.

Including bonuses, his deal is worth up to $160 million.

In the Bucks’ 149-136 win over the Indiana Pacers on March 29, 2023, the guard scored a career-high 51 points in 33 minutes as a starter. Along with tallying eight boards and assists, the UCLA product shot 20-of-30 (66.7%) from the floor and drained three 3-pointers.

Players that were Top-50 in both Offensive & Defensive Impact in ‘22-‘23 per FiveThirtyEight’s RAPTOR Model

• Anthony Davis
• Derrick White
• Giannis Antetokounmpo
• Joel Embiid
• Jrue Holiday
• Kawhi Leonard
• Kristaps Porzingis
• Nikola Jokic
• Paul George

Thoughts?

— NBA University (@NBA_University) September 20, 2023

Furthermore, Holiday received a $1 million bonus after helping Milwaukee win the 2021 NBA Finals.

On Jan. 23, 2023, Holiday was named the NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week for Week 14, his second career Player of the Week award. The Bucks guard averaged 33.3 points, 4.7 boards, 9.3 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. Plus, he shot 56.9% from the field and 47.8% from 3-point range.

Equally important, Holiday became the NBA’s all-time leader in blocks for a point guard, with a total of 453. Among active players, the two-time All-Star ranks 45th overall. He trails centers Serge Ibaka (1,759), Brook Lopez (1,700), DeAndre Jordan (1,524), and others.

However, considering his position, the milestone is significant. A number of centers and forwards rank ahead of Jrue Holiday on the list. Though, the only other active guard that comes close to him is ex-Los Angeles Clippers’ John Wall, who ranks 47th with 439 blocks.

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