After Paul George informed the Pacers front office that he will leave the team next summer, the Indiana Pacers decided that it is time to move on. They traded George to the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier this summer, and in return, they received Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. Obviously, it is going to be hard for the Pacers to recover from the departure of Paul George, as he was one of the best two-way players in the NBA. He spent his first seven seasons playing with the Pacers, and averaged 18.1 points and 6.3 rebounds per game throughout those seasons.
Indiana is now facing a long rebuilding process, and their latest move shows that they are ready to do what's necessary and what's best for the franchise.
Ellis parts ways with the Pacers
ESPN reported earlier this week that the Indiana Pacers have waived their veteran point-guard Monta Ellis. The 6-foot-3 guard spent his previous two seasons playing with the Pacers, and last season he averaged 8.5 points and 3.2 assists per game. His 8.5 points per game were the lowest since his rookie season, as he came off the bench mostly last season. He entered the league in 2005, as the Golden State Warriors drafted him in the second round as the 40th pick. Ellis is a 12-year NBA veteran, and he holds career averages of 17.8 points and 4.6 assists per game.
He had two years left on his contract with Indiana, but they decided it was time to move on and release him. By waiving Ellis, the Pacers saved nearly $9 million on the salary cap. Earlier this offseason, the NBA announced that Ellis violated the league's anti-drug policy and that he will be suspended for the first five games of the next season.
Hopefully this doesn't affect him in getting an opportunity to play in the NBA again.
Bojan Bogdanovic headed to Indiana
Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported on Friday that the Pacers have acquired Bojan Bogdanovic. Bogdanovic was a free agent this summer, and he signed a two-year deal with Indiana worth around $21 million. Bogdanovic was traded from the Nets to the Wizards midway through last season.
He played a major role in Wizards' playoff run last season, and in 26 games with Washington he averaged 12.7 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. Bogdanovic proved to be a good three-point shooter as he connected on 39% of his shots behind the arc last season.
Free agent Bojan Bogdanovic has agreed to a two-year, $21M deal with the Indiana Pacers, league source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) 7. srpnja 2017.
He will most likely continue to come off the bench next season as well, and the Pacers will welcome his ability to strecth the floor and make three-pointer consistently.
