Two-way contracts are among the last steps for Indiana Pacers 2024 offseason

The Pacers roster is nearly done taking shape

Jan 15, 2024; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Indiana Pacers center Oscar Tshiebwe (44) has his shot blocked by Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) during the fourth quarter at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports / Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

After agreeing to new deals with guard Andrew Nembhard as well as forward James Johnson on Wednesday, the Indiana Pacers offseason appears to be nearly done. Outside of considerations with forward Kendall Brown and his non-guaranteed contract, the last step for the blue and gold is to sort out their two-way deals.

Every team in the NBA is given three two-way contract slots for players. Anyone with three or fewer years of service in the league can ink a two-way deal, and those contracts allow teams to easily pass a player back and forth between their G League affiliate and NBA club.

Anyone on a two-way deal can play in up to 50 games with their NBA franchise during a given season. Almost always, players on such deals spend more time in the G League — the Indiana Mad Ants were fortunate last season in that they got several games out of two-way contract players (119 in total), and they reached the postseason.

The Pacers have yet to fill a single one of their two-way contract openings, being only one of two teams with that reality currently. There is no rush to fill them or requirement that they are signed by a specific date, but any candidate for a two-way agreement would likely hope to put pen to paper as early as possible. For Indiana, it's the next step in their offseason as they finish building their team for 2024-25.

Four players stand out as candidates for two-way contracts. Two, in particular, seem somewhat obvious in Tristen Newton and Enrique Freeman. Indiana selected those two players with the 49th and 50th picks in the 2024 NBA Draft and holds their rights. Bringing them in on two-way deals so that they can develop in the G League makes good sense.

Typically, players chosen late in the second-round wind up on two-way agreements unless their team needs cheap talent on a standard roster spot. Given that the blue and gold have 15 players on standard deals already, fitting in Freeman or Newton on their roster would require a waiver or trade.

"He's a joyful kid. Loves playing the game. Loves helping his teammates, loves to talk. He's a lot like Sheppard in that aspect," Pacers summer league head coach Jannero Pargo said of Freeman. "Love having him on our team, looking forward to a great summer league from him."

Two other names to keep an eye on for two-way deals with Indiana are Oscar Tshiebwe and Quenton Jackson. Both players were on a two-way contract with the Pacers to end last season and just wrapped up summer league with the blue and gold.

Prior to the start of free agency, they each received a qualifying offer, which sent them into restricted free agency. Said offer was not rescinded for either player prior to July 13, meaning it now requires a joint decision from both the Pacers and the player to be pulled. Jackson or Tshiebwe could, in theory, sign their qualifying offer at any time and be on a two-way deal. But Indiana could simply waive them if that happened at an unwanted time. Qualifying offers must be signed (or not signed) by October 1.

Both Jackson and Tshiebwe had strong performances to end summer league, and they both play a position that overlaps with a ton of depth on their NBA squad. There is no clear-cut best answer for which player would be a better choice — if it is even a choice — for a two-way deal in Indiana. That said, Jackson may be a slightly better stylistic fit with the blue and gold. Tsheibwe was the G League Rookie of the Year last season.

Other candidates could wiggle into the two-way mix. Dakota Mathias had a solid summer league for the Pacers, though he is older. Mojave King, a 2023 draft pick by the franchise, is currently playing in New Zealand. Anyone who pops in training camp or preseason action could snag a two-way deal.

But it's entirely possible that the Pacers are just trying to figure out who, among four obvious candidates, should be their three two-way contract players. There is no need for a decision to come soon, but it is one of the last orders of business for the organization this summer.

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• Source: Indiana Pacers and guard Andrew Nembhard agree to three-year contract extension. CLICK HERE.
• Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton can pick up little things from NBA Stars with Team USA. CLICK HERE.
• Source: Indiana Pacers to bring back forward James Johnson on a one-year deal. CLICK HERE.
• Five takeaways from 2024 summer league play for the Indiana Pacers. CLICK HERE.
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