Nets trade Thaddeus Young to Pacers for No. 20 pick
The Brooklyn Nets will indeed have a first-round pick in Thursday's draft.
The Nets have traded power forward Thaddeus Young to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for the Pacers' No. 20 pick and a future second-rounder, sources told The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowksi.
The deal will get the Nets - who otherwise wouldn't be picking until No. 55 - a much-needed young prospect. Their No. 3 overall pick belongs to the Boston Celtics, they're on the hook for a first-round pick swap again next year, and they owe their 2018 first-rounder to the Celtics outright.
For the Pacers, the deal is their second in as many days - they acquired point guard Jeff Teague from the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday - in what appears to be a concerted effort to put more speed and scoring around Paul George. In Young, they also have a semblance of the small-ball power forward they wanted George to be last season.
Young obviously doesn't stretch defenses like George, but he can get up and down the floor in a hurry, while also handling the gritty, physical defensive assignments in the post that George wanted no part of.
Related: Fantasy Fallout: Even with the move to Indiana, don't reach too high for Young
Young was a rare bright spot for the Nets this season, averaging 15.1 points, a career-high nine rebounds, and 1.5 steals, while shooting 51.4 percent from the field. He has three years and approximately $39 million left on his contract, the third year being a player option valued at $13.8 million.
For the Nets, it's the second straight year they've managed to parlay an asset into a first-round draft pick. On draft night a year ago, they snagged the No. 23 pick by dealing center Mason Plumlee to the Portland Trail Blazers, and drafted swingman Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.
Complications with the salary cap are expected to push the official completion of the trade until early July, when the new, $94-million cap takes effect, The Vertical's Bobby Marks reports. That means the Pacers will still be picking at No. 20 on Thursday night, but they'll be doing so at the Nets' behest.