Pacers center Oscar Tshiebwe one of final few restricted free agents remaining

Tshiebwe was on a two-way deal last year

Feb 16, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Team Detlef center Oscar Tshiebwe (44) of the Indiana Mad Ants dunks the ball during a Rising Stars semifinal game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

With free agency nearing a standstill and July almost over, center Oscar Tshiebwe is one of the few restricted free agents still on the market. He was with the Indiana Pacers last season on a two-way contract, and the Pacers sent him a qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent in late June — as reported here on Pacers On SI.

Tshiebwe switched his representation to Octagon in early July and is still floating out there as a restricted free agent. Out of every player to receive a qualifying offer this offseason, only five are still unsigned restricted free agents in Tsheibwe, Emoni Bates, Isaac Okoro, Jacob Toppin, and Nico Mannion — all of those players besides Okoro are coming off of two-ways deals. Toppin is the brother of Pacers forward Obi Toppin.

A few players, including Cole Swider and Alondes Williams, had their qualifying offers pulled earlier in the offseason, and that sent them into unrestricted free agency. Outside of the names already listed, every restricted free agent has signed a new contract — and so far, they have all stayed with their previous team.

Tshiebwe is in an interesting spot. He was the G League Rookie of the Year last season and is a supremely talented rebounder. But he is limited in other ways, and his recent summer league showed all of that.

As things stand right now, Indiana has a full roster for the 2024-25 season. They have 15 players with standard deals, though Kendall Brown's contract is fully non-guaranteed. He, too, struggled in summer league.

The Pacers do have an open two-way contract spot after signing both Tristen Newton and Quenton Jackson to deals over the weekend. While that does mean they technically have an opening 50th overall pick Enrique Freeman is still hanging out as an unsigned player.

Freeman is virtually a lock to be on the team in some capacity. He was impressive in summer league, and the fact that he wasn't signed in the first batch of two-way agreements by Indiana suggests that the team is considering signing him to a different type of agreement.

Should Freeman land on a two-way, Tshiebwe may be out of the mix unless Indiana opts to waive Brown. The Pacers already have several frontcourt players under contract, so their need for another center is fairly small. If Freeman gets a roster spot instead of Brown (or something else happens that permits Freeman to be among the standard 15-man group), then perhaps Tshiebwe could be back on another two-way.

The deadline for a decision with a qualifying offer is October 1 by default, but that deadline can be extended. That said, the Pacers will be in training camp by that date, so Tshiebwe's future will be decided before then.

As it stands, Indiana has 15 players under contract for the coming season and two players on two-way agreements. They can carry up to 21 players on deals in the offseason.

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