Indiana Pacers Roster Could Change With Several Players Set To Enter Free Agency

SportsMoney Indiana Pacers Roster Could Change With Several Players Set To Enter Free Agency Tony East Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. I cover the Indiana Pacers and NBA players from the state of Indiana New! Follow this author to improve your content experience. Got it! Jun 30, 2022, 08:48am EDT | Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – FEBRUARY 15: Grayson Allen #7 of the Milwaukee Bucks drives to the basket .

. . [+] against Oshae Brissett #12 and Jalen Smith #25 of the Indiana Pacers during the first half of a game at Fiserv Forum on February 15, 2022 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

(Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) Getty Images Today, NBA free agency officially begins. At 6 p. m.

Eastern Time, front offices are permitted to begin negotiating with free agents, meaning contracts can be ironed out between players and teams. The Indiana Pacers already completed the biggest event of their offseason when they drafted Bennedict Mathurin with the franchise’s highest draft pick in three decades. With draft night in the rearview mirror, Indiana can turn its attention toward free agency, and the front office has significant financial resources at its disposal this offseason.

Indiana could reach upwards of $20 million of salary cap space in free agency if they want to build their team with some splashy signings. The team could also opt to stay over the salary cap and use salary cap exceptions or trade exceptions to improve the roster. Indiana brass has flexibility this summer.

Said flexibility could allow the franchise to add talent. It could also allow the team to retain talent, which may be the more important task of the two for the blue and gold this offseason. The Pacers have seven of their own players that could enter free agency this summer, and each one has unique circumstances influencing their contract negotiations.

T. J. Warren Warren has been with Indiana for the last three seasons, but he has played in just 71 games during that span.

At his best, the wing has been an incredible player for the blue and gold, but he missed too much time during the last two seasons to retain high value as he enters free agency. MORE FOR YOU WWE Extreme Rules 2021 Results: Winners, News And Notes As Roman Reigns Beats The Demon The World’s Highest-Paid Soccer Players 2021: Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo Reclaims Top Spot From PSG’s Lionel Messi The Good, Bad And Ugly From The Green Bay Packers’ Win Over The San Francisco 49ers Determining what he is worth will be difficult for NBA teams, including the Pacers. Indiana has a need on the wing and the monetary resources to bring Warren back, but he will be 29 when the 2022-23 season starts and may be outside the team’s preferred age range for their roster shuffle.

“I don’t know much,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said when asked about Warren’s health last week. Oshae Brissett Brissett had a team option in his contract this offseason, and the Pacers could have declined it and sent the Canadian forward into restricted free agency. Instead, the team chose to pick up the option, and Brissett will play for the blue and gold on an expiring $1.

8 million contract in 2022-23. He will be an unrestricted free agent in the 2023 offseason unless he agrees to a contract extension before then, which he is eligible for in mid-March of 2023, per Bobby Marks of ESPN . “I would have to imagine that there’s a pretty strong chance the option is picked up,” Carlisle shared earlier this month.

He turned out to be correct. “He’s having a great summer, he’s working his butt off this summer. And he’s young.

It all bodes well. ” Lance Stephenson Stephenson joined the Pacers for 40 games last season and put up some of the best numbers he has in his career. His playmaking skills frequently gave the team a much-needed jolt.

“He’s making everyone’s job easier,” former Pacers All-Star center Domantas Sabonis said of Stephenson during the season. “He has a swag that goes around that everyone wants to be a part of. ” While players enjoy playing with Stephenson, and he is a fan favorite, Indiana has a logjam at the guard spots after selecting two backcourt players in the NBA Draft.

That decreases the chance of Stephenson returning to Indiana , though those chances could improve if some Pacers guards get traded. MINNEAPOLIS, MN – FEBRUARY 10: Tim Frazier #2 of the New Orleans Pelicans shoots the ball against . .

. [+] Ricky Rubio #9 and Lance Stephenson #7 of the Minnesota Timberwolves during the game on February 10, 2017 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) Getty Images Ricky Rubio The Pacers acquired Rubio in a trade back in February, but he never played a game for the franchise as he recovered from a torn ACL.

Rubio may still have some value to NBA teams, but Indiana doesn’t need his services thanks to the number of guards already under contract for the team. Rubio could be signed-and-traded , however, which would allow the Pacers to scoop up assets in exchange for the Spanish guard if they can come to an agreement with another team. Jalen Smith Smith played the best basketball of his career for the Pacers last season.

After being acquired in a deal just before the trade deadline, Smith averaged 13. 4 points and 7. 6 rebounds per game for the blue and gold across 22 games.

He shot 37. 3% from long-range as well — he finally found his footing in the NBA. The former top-ten pick will enter free agency this summer after just two years in the league, which is rare for such a high draft pick.

Indiana is limited in how much money they can offer Smith on his next deal, which will make it difficult for the team to keep him . “I love him. He’s important to us.

Beyond that, I think we’re just going to have to see where things go on July 1,” Carlisle said of Smith. “He’s got an amazing opportunity here. ” Most teams can offer Smith more money than the Pacers can, so Indiana will need to pitch Smith on opportunity and familiarity.

They may be able to offer a hefty role, and whatever opportunity Smith chooses will be crucial for his long-term outlook. He played poorly prior to joining the Pacers, so he needs to prove that he is an improved player in 2022-23. Nate Hinton and Gabe York Hinton and York finished the season on two-way contracts for Indiana.

Both could have become a restricted free agent and potentially returned to the Pacers this offseason, but no announcement was made indicating that either player received a qualifying offer. As a result, both Hinton and York will become unrestricted free agents. “He’s a developing young player that is a hard playing son-of-a-gun.

He’s one of the best competitors I’ve ever been around in this league,” Carlisle said of Hinton during 2021-22 training camp. “He’s worked hard on his shooting and his offensive game. ” Hinton, 23, could be a player that the blue and gold look at adding on a cheap contract going into next season, but it is more likely that both Hinton and York will be looking for their next team elsewhere.

Indiana just doesn’t need guard depth. The Indiana Pacers will be an active team in free agency, and these seven names will influence many of their moves. Follow me on Twitter .

Check out my website . Tony East Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.