Free agency preview for Pacers two-way deals Kendall Brown & Gabe York

The Indiana Pacers have a history of success with their two-way contracts.

From 2017 through 2019, they watched Edmond Sumner develop from a two-way contract guard to a nearly every day contributor for the team. Alex Poythresss, Ben Moore, Duane Washington Jr, and Terry Taylor have all been promoted to standard contracts after some time on a two-way with the blue and gold. The Pacers have been able to find and develop talent with the unique contracts.

Two-way deals allow players to split time between the G League and the NBA, so they are a useful tool for growing young players. In the NBA’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement, each franchise will be permitted to sign three players to a two-way deal — that number was previously two.

That matters for the Pacers, who have a pair of players entering free agency in the coming days after finishing 2022-23 on a two-way deal. Kendall Brown, the 48th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, as well as Gabe York are headed to free agency after a season with Indiana.

The team has an interesting choice to ponder when considering if they want to retain each player, and the arguments to do so are very different.

Brown is a perfect two-way candidate. He has unbelievable athleticism and has the size to play on the wing, making him a worthy gamble for several NBA teams. The Pacers were excited about getting him in the draft last year, so much so that they traded into the second round to grab him.

The 20-year old was showing promise early in his rookie season, but a stress fracture in his right tibia ended his season early. He played in six NBA games, where he averaged 1.5 points and 1.0 rebounds per game.

His G League stats were solid. In 16 games with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Brown averaged 10.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game while playing impressive defense and shooting 50.7% from the field. He got better as the season progressed.

“We still really feel good about Kendall Brown,” Pacers President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard said in April. “He had a bad injury… but we really like him. Whether he’s two-way or on the roster, I’m not sure yet.”

Brown has received a qualifying offer from the blue and gold, meaning he is a restricted free agent this offseason. Indiana can match any offer Brown gets from another team.

Given Pritchard’s comments and the Pacers current roster crunch — the team currently has 14 players with standard contracts and a boatload of cap space — a two-way deal seems to be the most likely outcome for Brown if he returns. He is on the team’s summer league roster, which will give Indiana a chance to see him play in game action before committing to any contracts, if they want to be patient.

“I’m just focused on getting better. I’m not really looking into that,” Brown said of his free agency at his end-of-season exit interview. He wanted to focus his offseason on improving his health.

If Brown looks healthy and has a decent Summer League performance, returning to the Pacers on a two-way contract makes a ton of sense. Even if he performs poorly, his potential as an athletic wing might be worth keeping around. Because the Pacers have available two way slots — undrafted Kentucky big man Oscar Tshiebwe is the only player reportedly taking one as of now — Brown could be in the mix for one of them this offseason.

Isaiah Wong, who the Pacers drafted 55th overall last Thursday, could be a two-way candidate as well.

York, unlike Brown, is not a restricted free agent. He didn’t have enough days on Indiana’s active roster this past season to be eligible. He also isn’t on the Pacers Summer League roster, so his future with the franchise is cloudy at best.

York played in three games for the blue and gold in 2022-23. He received a late-season promotion to the NBA club after spending most of the year with the Mad Ants. He averaged 22.1 points per game in the G League.

With the Pacers, York contributed 8.0 points and 1.7 assists per game. He showed off his ability to find space from beyond the arc and took 18 threes in his trio of appearances, canning six of them.

Now, he’s an unrestricted free agent. “Stay vigilant, stay focused. Keep my head down, keep working. Same thing I did last year,” York said of his focus in free agency. He wants to remain healthy after a great campaign scoring the ball.

The 29-year old guard found himself in a similar position last summer. He ended the 2021-22 campaign on a two-way deal, and he played for the Pacers in Summer League before spending most of the year with the Mad Ants. This year, however, he isn’t on the Summer League roster and is an unrestricted free agent.

The addition of Wong, a young guard who could nab a two-way deal, hurts York. The Pacers now have guard depth that could get some time in the G League and may not have a need for York’s services at the pro level going into next season. It’s possible that another excellent G League campaign could change their minds, but as it stands, an imminent reunion for the Pacers and York feels unlikely.

Free agency begins tomorrow, so Brown and York’s fates could be known soon. Given the addition of Tshiebwe and Wong in Indiana, though, there is likely only room for one of them going forward, and Brown seems to be the more likely candidate to stick around.