Celtics Rumors: Latest Buzz Surrounding Gordon Hayward Trade Interest

As the NBA's free agency period gets underway, there are a lot of players with some big decisions to make, but perhaps no player has more riding on his decision than Gordon Hayward.

The Boston Celtics forward has a $34.2 million player option for the final year of his contract, so the question is this: Should he opt in or opt out?

Normally, choosing whether to opt out of that kind of contract is tough enough, but with the impending hit the salary cap will take this offseason, the stakes are even higher.

Conventional wisdom says that it's unlikely that Gordon will choose to opt out in such a shaky free-agent market, especially without a guarantee of a long term deal.

But in professional sports, there's always an interesting sidebar. For the 30-year-old former All-Star, that's the possibility of a trade.

According to SNY's Ian Begley, the Indiana Pacers "continue to have interest" in dealing for Hayward. 

Obviously, the trade would depend on Boston's willingness to move the talented but oft-injured wing, and if they are open to the idea, there's no indication as to what they would want in return.

The Celtics have to at least be thinking about it, though, because his expiring contract might be a nice, shiny object for the right team, and if they don't move him, he could walk away next summer for nothing.

Of course, there's no question that a healthy Hayward would be a great fit in Indiana, but that's a tall order for the former Butler standout.

He signed with the Celtics back in 2017 with the promise of big things to come after making his first All-Star team with the Utah Jazz earlier that year.

But he suffered a gruesome injury less than six minutes into his debut game that sidelined him for the rest of the season.

And since then, he's had a lot of bad luck with injuries that have all but overshadowed a once-promising career.

That said, Hayward still managed to average 17.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game last year as the fourth option behind Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kemba Walker.

Maybe a change of scenery would be just what the doctor ordered. If Hayward can stay healthy next season, he could have a chance to make more of an impact as an offensive threat for the Pacers if they roll the dice and get him.

The Athletic's Jared Weiss reported in late-September that Victor Oladipo and Myles Turner might be looking to move on, so a trade for Hayward might be the best thing for both teams.

And with the way the Pacers managed to overachieve last season without Victor Oladipo in the lineup, maybe Hayward could be the piece that puts them over the top.

Maurice Bobb covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow Maurice on Twitter, @ReeseReport

Statistics obtained from Basketball Reference