Indiana Pacers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Central Notes: McMillan, Bulls, Buford

May 5th, 2020 at 7:41pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Pacers coach Nate McMillan has been preparing his team to play basketball again as best as he can, as Akeem Glaspie of the Indianapolis Star relays.

Not all players on the Pacers have been on equal footing during the hiatus, however. Victor Oladipo and Malcolm Brogdon are among those who have basketball courts at their homes or an established nearby place. Others, like Goga Bitadze, are living in apartments without access to gyms.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

How will the Bulls‘ new front office operate? K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports envisions a collaborative approach, similar to Arturas Karnisovas’ stints with Denver and Houston.
Jon Greenberg of The Athletic takes a look at the Bulls‘ past and wonders whether the new leadership is going to bring more success to Chicago. The scribe believes the new regime can be successful, though he notes that having a “players first” mentality would suit the newcomers well.
The Bucks have locked in Chase Buford to coach their G League squad for another season, the team announced on its website. “Chase has done a tremendous job in his first season at the helm,” said Milwaukee Bucks VP of basketball operations and Wisconsin Herd GM Dave Dean. “As an organization, we’re thrilled to have Chase return for a second season, and we look forward to his leadership and continued development as we build off the current campaign.”

Opposing Teams Expected To Monitor Pacers, Oladipo

May 1st, 2020 at 1:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Teams around the NBA are keeping an eye on the situation in Indiana, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who notes that Victor Oladipo will be entering a contract year in 2020/21 if he and the Pacers don’t agree to an extension before then.

ESPN’s Zach Lowe reported in February that the Pacers and Oladipo “very briefly” discussed the possibility of a contract extension prior to the start of the 2019/20 campaign. Sources tell Begley that the idea of a four-year, $80MM extension was brought up during those talks, which didn’t progress much beyond that point.

Technically, since Oladipo had two years left on his current deal prior to this season, an extension couldn’t have exceeded three years, totaling five overall. As such, Begley’s four-year figure may have included the guard’s $21MM salary for 2020/21.

Once the ’20/21 league year begins, Oladipo will once again become extension-eligible and could then tack on up to four new years to his expiring deal. Because the starting salary on a veteran extension is limited to 120% of a player’s previous salary, Oladipo could receive up to $25.2MM in year one, maxing out at about $113MM over four years.

There’s no reason to believe at this point that the Pacers won’t make a strong push to retain Oladipo. It’s worth noting that Indiana has already made long-term commitments of at least $18MM per year to three other players – Malcolm Brogdon, Domantas Sabonis, and Myles Turner – and that the club had a better record without Oladipo this season (32-20) than with him (7-6). But that sample size was small and the two-time All-Star was coming off a major quad injury that has sidelined him for a full year.

Additionally, while the Pacers don’t have a ton of cap flexibility in future years, they hold Oladipo’s Bird rights and – depending on where the cap lands going forward – could likely stay out of the tax while re-signing him, either to an extension or as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.

Still, as Begley writes, if the 2019/20 season can be resumed, teams around the league figure to be monitoring Oladipo and the Pacers to see how his chemistry with Brogdon and the rest of the team develops.

Malcolm Brogdon: “I’m 100%”

April 25th, 2020 at 4:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Pacers guard Malcolm Brogdon offered good news about his injury status in a brief message to fans on the team’s Twitter account.

“I’m feeling great,” he said. “I’ve been doing a lot of rehab, doing as much as I can under this quarantine, but I’m 100%. I’ve been on my bike, my Peloton bike, and I’ve been running hills in my backyard. Thank you for all of your support and wishes and prayers.”

Brogdon was listed as week to week when he suffered a torn muscle in his quadriceps in early March. He said at the time that he was planning to return for the postseason, but the NBA’s hiatus has allowed him to heal while missing hardly any games.

Brogdon has made an impact in his first season with Indiana after coming from the Bucks in a sign-and-trade deal. He’s averaging 16.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 7.1 assists through 48 games and has the Pacers tied for fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

2020/21 Salary Cap Preview: Indiana Pacers

April 24th, 2020 at 7:53pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is looking ahead at the 2020/21 salary cap situations for all 30 NBA teams. Due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the NBA, it’s impossible to know yet where the cap for 2020/21 will land. Given the league’s lost revenue, we’re assuming for now that it will stay the same as the ’19/20 cap, but it’s entirely possible it will end up higher or lower than that.

Despite some speculation that they’d struggle without Victor Oladipo for the first half of the 2019/20 season, the Pacers were just fine, thanks to a hot start by Malcolm Brogdon and a breakout season from Domantas Sabonis.

Oladipo’s rust following his 12-month absence contributed to some up-and-down play (Indiana was 9-9 after his return), but it would be interesting to see if a fully healthy version of the roster could win a playoff series in the East. With 11 players of this year’s players on guaranteed contracts for next season, the Pacers could run it back with a pretty similar squad in 2020/21.

Here’s where things stand for the Pacers financially in 2020/21, as we continue our Salary Cap Preview series:

Guaranteed Salary

Victor Oladipo ($21,000,000)
Malcolm Brogdon ($20,700,000)
Domantas Sabonis ($18,500,000)
Myles Turner ($18,000,000)
T.J. Warren ($11,750,000)
Jeremy Lamb ($10,500,000)
Doug McDermott ($7,333,333)
T.J. Leaf ($4,326,825)
Goga Bitadze ($2,957,520)
Aaron Holiday ($2,345,640)
Monta Ellis ($2,245,400) — Waived via stretch provision.
Edmond Sumner ($2,160,000)
T.J. McConnell ($1,000,000) — Partial guarantee. Non-guaranteed portion noted below. ¹
Total: $122,818,718

Player Options

None

Team Options

None

Non-Guaranteed Salary

T.J. McConnell ($2,500,000) ¹
Total: $2,500,000

Restricted Free Agents

Alize Johnson ($1,820,564 qualifying offer / $1,820,564 cap hold): Early Bird rights
Brian Bowen (two-way qualifying offer / $1,445,697 cap hold): Non-Bird rights
Naz Mitrou-Long (two-way qualifying offer / $1,445,697 cap hold): Non-Bird rights
Total (cap holds): $4,711,958

Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds

Justin Holiday ($5,720,400): Non-Bird rights
JaKarr Sampson ($1,620,564): Non-Bird rights
Total: $7,340,964

Offseason Cap Outlook

Last summer’s series of transactions – adding Brogdon, Warren, and Lamb, while extending Sabonis – will limit the Pacers’ flexibility going forward and eliminate any chance that they’ll have cap room during the 2020 offseason.

Still, barring a trade that adds salary, an aggressive deployment of the full mid-level exception, or an unexpected decline in the salary cap, the team should have a decent amount of breathing room below the tax line.

Cap Exceptions Available

Mid-level exception: $9,258,000 ²
Bi-annual exception: $3,623,000 ²

Footnotes

McConnell’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after October 17.
This is a projected value. If the Pacers’ team salary continues to increase, it’s possible they’d be limited to the taxpayer mid-level exception ($5,718,000).

Note: Minimum-salary and rookie-scale cap holds are based on the salary cap and could increase or decrease depending on where the cap lands.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders and Early Bird Rights was used in the creation of this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

And-Ones: Holiday Brothers, Green, NBA China

April 17th, 2020 at 3:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Asked in a group interview by Shams Charania of Stadium (video link) about the possibility of playing together in the future, the Holiday brothers expressed interest, even as Pacers guard Aaron Holiday acknowledged that it’s “probably unrealistic” for the time being.

Justin Holiday, who currently plays in Indiana alongside his younger brother on a one-year deal with the Pacers, said that the brothers probably get asked about the idea of teaming up more than they think about it themselves. Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday, meanwhile, said that he thinks the three brothers would “be good together” if they did play on the same team.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Top high school recruit Jalen Green, who decided to sign with the G League as part of the league’s revamped developmental program, will be provided with a full-ride college scholarship by the NBAGL if he wants to go to school at a later date, he tells Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). “I’m still going to be able to go back to college and finish school,” Green said. “So, it’s not really that I’m missing out on college because I can go back and finish whenever I need to.”
In a conversation at The Athletic, former NBA team executives Seth Partnow and John Hollinger traded some big-picture, outside-the-box suggestions for how to change the league. Among the ideas proposed: Expanding the league to 32 teams, revamping the draft workout process, and introducing a “suck tax,” which would hit the league’s worst teams with financial penalties.
NBA China CEO Derek Chang is stepping down from his position, the league announced on Thursday in a press release. Chang, who assumed the role in June 2018, will officially depart after May 15, as the NBA seeks a new executive for the position. It has presumably been a challenging year for Chang, who had to deal with the rift between the NBA and China as a result of Daryl Morey‘s tweet supporting Hong Kong protestors.

Central Notes: Pistons, Beasley, S. Brown, Brogdon

April 14th, 2020 at 6:43pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Pistons will enter the NBA offseason looking for upgrades in free agency and James Edwards III of The Athletic examines some restricted free agent options in the upcoming draft.

Malik Beasley is among the possibilities suggested by Edwards, though Detroit may have to overpay if the franchise hopes to land the shooting guard. Beasley came to Minnesota in the Robert Covington deal at the trade deadline and the Wolves have the right to match any offer sheet he receives.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Sterling Brown is another possible target, Edwards notes in the same piece. Brown has shown flashes in limited minutes for the Bucks and it’s feasible that the 25-year-old could perform better with more run.
Malcolm Brogdon was nursing a quad injury prior to the NBA’s hiatus, but Indiana’s prized offseason addition has informed Pacers president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard that he’s 100 percent recovered, as Scott Agness of The Athletic tweets.
If the season resumes, the Pacers may benefit from a healthy backcourt, J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star writes. In addition to Brogdon healing up, Victor Oladipo would have more time to get back to top form. Doug McDermott, who was nursing a big toe injury, has already returned to full health.

Lowe’s Latest: McDermott, Finney-Smith, Wood, MCW

April 13th, 2020 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Each year, Zach Lowe of ESPN names his “Luke Walton All-Stars,” a group of players who appeared to be borderline NBA players until finding a role – and a team – that suits them. This year’s installment of Lowe’s Luke Walton All-Stars serves as a handful of mini-profiles on his choices and features a number of fascinating tidbits on those players.

For instance, according to Lowe, Doug McDermott – who has been traded four times since being drafted in 2014 – has gotten into the habit of donating clothes to Goodwill as the annual trade deadline approaches to make packing easier in case he gets moved again.

As Lowe details, McDermott was worried a trade to Dallas in February 2018 might be his “last chance” in the NBA, but the sharpshooter credits Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle for helping him play loose and urging him to not hesitate to launch three-pointers. The Mavs wanted to re-sign McDermott in 2018 but didn’t have the cap flexibility to do so, and Carlisle encouraged him to take the Pacers‘ three-year, $22MM offer, Lowe adds.

Lowe’s story is worth checking out in full, but here are a few of the highlights from the piece:

The Mavericks had to beat out the Heat and Pelicans to sign Dorian Finney-Smith as an undrafted free agent in 2016, per Lowe. The three-year deal with a $100K guarantee was “probably more than the Mavs wanted to offer,” since Finney-Smith seemed at the time like a long shot to make the regular season roster, but it turned into a great investment.
Despite a history of productivity, Pistons big man Christian Wood bounced around the NBA due to reputational concerns, including a perception that he was an unreliable communicator, according to Lowe, who says there was gossip around the NBA about Wood splurging on a Bentley after banking “very little” NBA money. “There is stuff in my background that affected my reputation,” Wood said. “It was never basketball-related.”
Earlier in his career, Marquese Chriss was insistent about his preference to play power forward, but the Warriors‘ big man now admits it’s not his ideal position, per Lowe. “I was naive,” Chriss said. “I realize now the skill set I have is better for (center).”
Former Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams has now adjusted to a much more modest role with the Magic, in which he focuses on playing lockdown defense and “hitting singles” (rather than swinging for the fences) on offense, according to Lowe. “It wasn’t easy,” Carter-Williams said. “I still believe I can do more. But this is part of maturing. Maybe one day I’ll get a bigger role and do what I did in Philadelphia. Maybe I won’t. Either way, I’m happy I’m playing.”

Myles Turner's Father Recovers From COVID-19 Following Hospitalization

April 10th, 2020 at 5:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Pacers center Myles Turner revealed during an appearance on CJ McCollum‘s podcast (hat tip to Dan Feldman of NBC Sports) that his father was hospitalized with COVID-19 for nearly a week before recovering. “He’s not contagious anymore. He’s back on his feet,” Turner said. “It’s a blessing that he was able to make it through, but there’s a lot of people that aren’t. So, I think having something personal happen to you like that, that’s kind of what made it, the perspective, all feel real.”

Eastern Notes: Bulls, Simon, Brown, Draft

April 5th, 2020 at 5:03pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Bulls are entering an offseason of change, as the franchise is looking to revamp its basketball operations department. The Athletic’s John Hollinger hears that Miami’s VP of basketball operations Adam Simon is a leading candidate for the team’s top front office job (confirming an earlier report) and adds that the chatter about Indiana’s Chad Buchanan was rather loud before the Pacers‘ GM took himself out of the running. Denver’s Arturas Karnisovas and Toronto’s Bobby Webster have also been linked to the Bulls’ opening.

Hollinger wonders if Chicago will also search for a new head coach during the NBA’s hiatus. Jim Boylen‘s future with the club is uncertain and the Bulls won’t be the only team looking for a new head coach this offseason.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Many insiders believe that Sixers coach Brett Brown is on the hot seat, though it’s unlikely that the team makes a move while the league is on hiatus, Hollinger adds in the same piece. Firing Brown and having the Sixers proceed to the playoffs with a new coach wouldn’t be an ideal scenario.
The Cavaliers don’t have enough intel on their top young talent to rule out selecting a player at any position in the 2020 draft, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes. Darius Garland and Kevin Porter Jr. both appear to be long-term building blocks, yet neither is certain to be an All-Star, so the Cavs should select the best available player regardless of position with their top pick.
Keith Langlois of NBA.com examines Khyri Thomas‘ progress since the Pistons‘ drafted him with the No. 38 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft. Injuries have stunted Thomas’ growth and while the franchise doesn’t have major talent on the wing, he’ll need to show more if he’s going to stay with Detroit beyond his current contract, which is non-guaranteed for next season.

Chad Buchanan To Stay With Pacers, Turns Down Interview With Bulls

April 5th, 2020 at 10:05am CST by Arthur Hill

Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan is declining an opportunity to interview for the Bulls‘ top front office position, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Buchanan decided to remain in his current job, saying he and his family have been treated well by the organization.

Toronto’s Bobby Webster, Miami’s Adam Simon and Denver’s Arturas Karnisovas are the most prominent remaining candidates for the position, Charania adds, but Chicago will continue to research other possibilities (Twitter link).

Buchanan, who is in his third year as Indiana’s GM, also worked with president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard in Portland before they both came to Indiana. His comfort level with that partnership played a strong role in the decision to stay, a source tells K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago.

The Bulls are seeking permission to interview Webster, Simon and Karnisovas, according to Johnson, who adds that team president Michael Reinsdorf hopes to fill the position before the NBA hiatus is over. Whoever is ultimately hired to run the organization may make more hires and will launch an overhaul of the scouting department.

Executive vice president John Paxson is expected to be retained in an advisory role, but the fate of former GM Gar Forman, who is now working mainly in scouting, may be determined by the new regime. Reinsdorf is still a strong supporter of coach Jim Boylen, Johnson notes, but the fate of all the coaches will be decided by the new team president.

Assistant GM Steve Weinman is believed to be safe, Johnson writes. He has built a strong reputation for his expertise with salary cap issues and the collective bargaining agreement.