Will the Sixers make a deal at trade deadline? Or monitor their health and stand pat?

The NBA trade deadline is three weeks away. Aside from the health of Joel Embiid and a few of his teammates, the biggest question surrounding the 76ers is whether they’ll make a major deal.

That’s yet to be determined, as the Sixers patiently monitor situations across the league. But while they exercise their patience, the league at large is not on hold. In the latest big deal, the Indiana Pacers acquired Toronto Raptors forward Pascal Siakam in Wednesday’s blockbuster trade.

Sixers coach Nick Nurse, who coached the Raptors the previous five seasons, gave his thoughts on the trade following Thursday’s practice.

“Listen, Pascal is obviously a really good player, two-way player, versatile,” Nurse said. “I think [that’s] what he provides for them. I mean, he obviously gives them a little more size. They play a lot of guards and … he’ll probably help them a little bit matchup-wise. He can defend multiple positions.”

» READ MORE: Sixers’ Tobias Harris taking on several roles and making a difference on the margins

Siakam, a 6-foot-8, 230-pound forward, is averaging 22.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.9 assists while shooting 52.2% from the field. The Pacers are excited about pairing the two-time All-Star with All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton and center Myles Turner.

His addition makes an already dangerous team more treacherous. It could also be a squad the Sixers (26-13) might not want to face in a playoff series.

The squads split their first two series meetings, with Haliburton averaging 29 points and 16 assists. He also had zero turnovers in those games. The Sixers, who are third in the East, will face the new-look Pacers next Thursday in Indianapolis in the teams’ third and final meeting of the season.

Indiana headed nto Thursday’s road game against the Sacramento Kings with the conference’s seventh-best record at 23-17. But the Pacers have a 4-1 record against the second-place Milwaukee Bucks. The Central Division foes have met five times because they also faced off as part of the In-Season Tournament in Las Vegas, where the Pacers made it to the finals. The Pacers also split this season’s four meetings with the first-place Boston Celtics.

So they have shown that they are better than the standings would indicate. Now, the uptempo team is better on paper with the addition of Siakam.

“He can score buckets, man,” Nurse said. “He can get the ball in the basket when you need them. So, it’ll be interesting to see how he fits in. I don’t know with the pace they’re playing and the style they’re playing, he certainly can run, right? He certainly can run and play in the open floor, so it should be interesting to see him do that again.”

Prior to facing the Pacers, the Sixers have road games against the Orlando Magic and Charlotte Hornets and a home tilt against the San Antonio Spurs.

» READ MORE: Sixers’ Joel Embiid still third in NBA All-Star voting; Tyrese Maxey fifth among East guards

Shooting guard De’Anthony Melton (lumbar spine stress response) and reserve forward Robert Covington (left knee swelling) will miss the two-game road trip. Melton will be re-evaluated this weekend.

There’s no definite timetable for Covington’s return.

Covington last played on Dec. 30. He’s averaging 4.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 16.1 minutes in 26 games with three starts since being acquired in a trade from the Los Angeles Clippers on Nov. 1.

“I would say again, I think that we know he’s not making the trip,” Nurse said, “but he is doing a lot of stuff now. So I would say we’re getting around, you know? It should be right around the corner. We’re hoping to get a good eval after this trip, and hopefully, it’ll be ready to go by then, but it’s hopeful.”