NBA Rumors: Pacers Fell 'Just Shy' of Landing OG Anunoby Before Knicks Trade

Before the New York Knicks pulled off the deal for OG Anunoby, he was close to being traded to the Indiana Pacers.

Per Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer, the Pacers "came just shy" of acquiring the 26-year-old from the Toronto Raptors before the Knicks stepped in.

New York sent RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and a 2024 second-round draft pick to Toronto for Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa and Malachi Flynn.

It's not a surprise the Pacers were in on Anunoby, as they had interest in him dating back to last season.

Per ESPN's Zach Lowe (h/t RealGM.com), the Pacers offered Toronto three first-round picks and a second-round pick in exchange for Anunoby leading up to the February 2023 trade deadline.

While Fischer noted it's unclear what the Pacers' offer was this time around, the Raptors seemed to prioritize receiving young players who can contribute right now rather than draft picks based on what they received from the Knicks.

Even without knowing Indiana's proposal, it's hard to find a package of players it could have offered with as much upside as Barrett and Quickley. Bennedict Mathurin stormed out of the gate strong as a rookie last season, but he's taken a step back since then.

Andrew Nembhard and Obi Toppin are probably best served as role players on a playoff team.

Quickley, in particular, is the kind of high-upside play that likely intrigued the Raptors. The 24-year-old owns a 37.2 percent success rate from three-point range in 255 games. He gives the team a legitimate starting point guard to run the offense and play with Scottie Barnes.

Barrett has always had promise as a two-way wing, but his consistency has been lacking. The Raptors can provide him with more of a leash to figure things out perhaps than Tom Thibodeau was willing to at this point.

The Pacers badly need anyone who can play defense, but especially a versatile wing who can guard the perimeter. Anunoby, who played college basketball at Indiana University, would have been a great fit for one of the most exciting teams in the NBA.

Unfortunately, Indiana wasn't able to make this deal work and will go back to the drawing board to find an answer before the Feb. 8 trade deadline.