Indiana Pacers acquire Luis Scola from Phoenix Suns in three-player trade
nba SI Wire
Brian Kotloff
Forward Luis Scola averaged 12.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game last season. (Scott Halleran/Getty Images)  The Indiana Pacers and Phoenix Suns have
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Sports Illustrated
Forward Luis Scola averaged 12.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game last season. (Scott Halleran/Getty Images)

The Indiana Pacers and Phoenix Suns have completed a trade to send power forward Luis Scola to Indiana for a lottery-protected 2014 first-round draft pick and bench players Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee, according to a Pacers press release.

Scola, who averaged 12.8 points and 6.6 rebounds in 26.4 minutes per game last season, will serve as the Pacers' primary big man off the bench, backing up starters Roy Hibbert and David West.

The 33-year-old Argentina native has career averages of 14.2 points and 7.5 rebounds as almost exclusively a starter for the Suns in 2012-13 and the Rockets for the first five years of his career.

From the press release:

"I’m very, very excited to play for the Pacers,” said Scola. “They are one of the top three teams in the NBA with a good shot to win a championship. I think it’s a great team and this is a great opportunity. I can’t wait.”

"Luis will be a very important asset to our team and to our bench,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “He has NBA experience, international experience and is the type of player that will fit in nicely on our roster."

Green, 27, averaged 7.0 points on just 36.6 percent shooting in 60 games last season, while Plumlee, the 26th overall pick in the 2012 draft, played just 56 total minutes during his rookie year.

Scola has two years and $9 million left on his contract, while Green is signed for two years, $7 million and Plumlee remains on a $1-plus-million rookie deal.

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