Pacers Reportedly Showing Interest in Brook Lopez Trade

The Indiana Pacers are sitting in the No. 6 spot in the Eastern Conference and are reportedly looking to bolster their roster before the stretch run with Brook Lopez.

Veteran NBA reporter Peter Vecsey reported Monday the Pacers are trying to acquire the Brooklyn Nets big man.

Brooklyn is the worst team in the league this season at 9-47 and is in a position where trading Lopez would make sense. Even though he is just 28 years old, the Nets don't appear anywhere near ready to compete while he is in his prime.

Lopez is also set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2018, per Spotrac, so Brooklyn would get something back for him before he potentially signs elsewhere. It could also use draft considerations since the Boston Celtics own a 2017 first-round pick swap with the Nets and their 2018 first-round pick.

From Indiana's perspective, the acquisition of Lopez would give them a secondary scorer alongside Paul George.

The 2013 All-Star averaged 13 points per game as a rookie in 2008-09 and never less than 17.2 a night the rest of his career. He is posting 20.8 points per game this season in what would be his fourth campaign surpassing the 20-point plateau.

Lopez has also averaged 7.2 rebounds per game in his career and could bolster the frontcourt for a Pacers team that is a mere 27th in the league in rebounds a night (41.2), per NBA.com.

While Lopez would provide depth alongside Myles Turner and Al Jefferson in the paint, Vecsey suggested the Pacers could be looking to add Lopez as a way of enticing George to stay in the future. George is set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2019, per Spotrac, but the opportunity to play with someone who could take more of the scoring load off his shoulders could be intriguing.

Even the mere chance Lopez could help keep the 26-year-old George in Indiana longer would make the trade worthwhile on its own for the Pacers.