The Indiana Pacers acquired center Ivica Zubac from the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for Bennedict Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson, two first-round picks and one second-round pick, the Clippers announced Thursday night.
The move gives Indiana a new starting center in Zubac, filling a hole left by the departure of center Myles Turner in the offseason. The Pacers have a 13-38 record this season, one of the worst in the NBA, but the move to acquire Zubac could benefit the team in the future.
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Zubac, who turns 29 next month, is averaging 14 points and 11 rebounds on 61% shooting this season. He is under contract through the 2027-28 season and will provide a new pick-and-roll partner when Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton returns next season from a torn Achilles.
Indiana also received third-year guard Kobe Brown in the deal.
Los Angeles is receiving a 2026 first-round pick from the Pacers, protected from picks Nos. 1-4 and 10-30 and a 2029 unprotected Pacers first-rounder, sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania. If the pick in 2026 does not convey it converts to an unprotected first in 2031.
Zubac should help shore up Indiana’s frontline, which ranks 28th in the league in points allowed by opponents in the paint this year. Since the start of last season, Zubac has contested more than 2,000 field goals and allowed opponents to shoot just 44.8% on those shots, according to GeniusIQ tracking. He should also prove to be a potent partner for Haliburton; per GeniusIQ tracking, Zubac set the third-most on-ball screens in the league since the start of last season.
“This trade is extremely difficult for many reasons, but in order to achieve our ultimate goals as an organization, we felt we had to take advantage of the opportunity,” Clippers president Lawrence Frank said in a statement. “Zu is one of the best centers in the NBA, the longest-tenured player on the team and a pillar of everything we’ve done for the past 7 years. … We will miss Zu as a player and a person.”
Mathurin, 23, should contribute to the youth movement by the Clippers in recent days. Los Angeles also acquired guard Darius Garland from the Cavaliers in exchange for James Harden. Mathurin is averaging 17.8 points, 5.4 rebounds on 43% shooting this season in 28 games.
Mathurin is in the final year of his rookie deal after not reaching an extension with Indiana over the offseason and will become a restricted free agent in the summer.
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