First Thoughts: West renews vows with Pacers
By CHRIS GOFF
ISL Correspondent
Indiana kept its biggest free-agent addition in franchise history.
David West will re-sign with the Pacers, an agreement first reported by Yahoo! Sports.
The two-time All-Star power forward agreed to a three-year contract worth $36 million to stay in Indianapolis, according to multiple reports.
West, 32, chose to stay without seriously exploring other options and accepted a workable deal for the Pacers, who could have offered up to four years and $78 million under CBA rules. He joined the team on a two-year, $20 million pact in 2011.
FAIT ACCOMPLI: Larry Bird, Donnie Walsh and Kevin Pritchard never wavered. All throughout this past season, the front office signaled that they wanted to get a new, long-term deal done with the veteran locker room leader.
West endured some losing and frustration in his final years in New Orleans. Now he said he was very reluctant to leave a situation which offered the talent to contend. Already this offseason, the Pacers have come to a verbal agreement with C.J. Watson, and have perhaps as much as $5.2 million left to spend on adding a piece or two to the bench. None of these moves can become official until July 10.
West must have been content with the pay raise. He also has enjoyed living in Indianapolis, which lacks the spotlight and nightlife that West finds extraneous. West also has forged great relationships with Roy Hibbert and several other teammates, and had not scheduled meetings with other clubs in recent days, increasing the assurance that he would stay with the Pacers.
WEST IS BEST: West has said the Pacers were the main team to seriously pursue him in 2011 free agency, begging the question: Where was the rest of the league? In 139 games over two seasons in blue and gold, West averaged 15.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game on 49.3 percent shooting. He taught young players how to win and single-handedly changed the trajectory of a franchise.
In his second season after serious knee surgery, West was much more spry on defense. At times he was even a force at that end. On offense he’s remained both a low-post scorer and a pick-and-pop weapon. From the intangibles department, the passion with which West plays the game of basketball is off the charts. Not the biggest. Not the fastest. Not the most talented. But he absolutely became the best he could be. Left nothing on the table. That’s the definition of a career.
WHAT’S NEXT: The Pacers’ next priority likely is finding a backup for West, if they don’t view Miles Plumlee as an internal solution. The team has rescinded its qualifying offer to Tyler Hansbrough, sources told ESPN.com’s Marc Stein, making him an unrestricted free agent. Jeff Pendergraph is also an unrestricted free agent. The Pacers could bring Hansbrough or Pendergraph back without using the midlevel exception. However, the brass appears to be looking elsewhere. Recent reports say the Pacers will go after unrestricted free-agent power forward Carl Landry.
Otherwise, aside from digging into that $5.2 million midlevel exception, the Pacers will look to fill out their roster with a player or two on minimum salaries. Then they’ll turn their attention to an extension for Paul George, with an October 31 deadline. If George’s rookie deal is not extended this summer he would hit restricted free agency in 2014.
