Indiana Pacers Linkstorm: Danny Granger Trade Edition

Jan 5, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) and small forward Danny Granger (33) celebrate in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Indiana Pacers made headlines as the NBA Trade Deadline was fast approaching yesterday. Longtime fan favorite Danny Granger was traded away to Philadelphia in exchange for forwards Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen.

The trade is barely a day old and everyone is offering their two cents on the deal. Will Turner be able to give the Pacers the firepower off the bench that Granger couldn’t?

I don’t know the answer to that. What I do know is that Turner is younger and more athletic than Granger and doesn’t have a history of injuries. The deal for Turner could turn out to be akin to the Colts trade for Trent Richardson. Right now, there is no consensus on the deal.

Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird offered up a statement about the deal late in the evening.

“We thank Danny for his eight-and-a-half seasons with us and we appreciate everything he did for us in his time here,” Bird said. “We felt we needed to make this trade to strengthen the core unit and our bench. In Evan and Lavoy, we think we got two really good players that can help us and we look forward to what they can bring.”

The team didn’t seem particularly happy about the deal either. Paul George referred to Granger as a “big brother and mentor” on his Instagram account.

Roy Hibbert offered this up on twitter moments after the deal was announced:

Granger was seen as the heart of the team and he was the lone bright point in the dark years following the Brawl. Granger made a surprise appearance at the Pacers practice facility today and hugged all the players before he left. The mood at practice was reportedly dour until he showed up to say goodbye. 

You can read our initial piece on the trade here.

Pacers Links:

Candace Buckner offered up two pieces on the Turner deal. The first discussing how the deal developed at the 11th hour, and the second going over how the deal benefits the Pacers now and in the future.

Sam Amick from USA Today touts the trade as another stroke of brilliance from Larry Bird.

Marc Stein of ESPN wonders if the Sixers will buy out Granger’s contract and if he should pursue it.

Tim Donahue of 8 Points, 9 seconds breaks down the cap ramifications.

Kevin Pelton grades the trade between the two teams. This is an ESPN Insider piece, so to summarize he gave the Pacers a C- and Sixers a B. The Pacers grade stems from inflated numbers by Turner, a lack of efficiency, and he feels that Granger was still kicking off the rust.

Jon Washburn of 8 Points, 9 Seconds discusses how Turner can succeed where Granger was unable to do so.

Tom Lewis from Indy Cornrows offered up a farewell piece for Granger that includes a nice highlight reel.

Ken Berger of CBS Sports had a great piece on the emotion behind the trade. 

Marc Spears of Yahoo Sports (and their horribly designed webpage) said that the deal was another move towards dethroning the Heat in the playoffs.

According to Matt Dollinger of Sports Illustrated, Granger is pissed and wants a buyout so he can sign with the Spurs or Heat.

Don’t forget to follow us on twitter, @InkOnIndy, and make sure to “Like” us on Facebook.