Pacers Urged to Sign Best Free Agent Available With Remaining Cap Space

Feb 5, 2021; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Al Horford (42) defends a shot by Minnesota Timberwolves guard Malik Beasley (5) during the first half at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

An insider is urging the Indiana Pacers to sign an elite free agent this summer.

The club finds itself at an impasse: most of the core pieces from Indiana's run to a seven-game NBA Finals appearance against the Oklahoma City Thunder this June — but two starters will be gone in 2025-26.

During the first quarter of that fateful Game 7, two-time All-NBA point guard Tyrese Haliburton ruptured his Achilles tendon. The 6-foot-5 Iowa State product is already set to miss the entire forthcoming season. That may have helped lead to 3-and-D starting center Myles Turner's free agent departure to the Milwaukee Bucks.

So the Pacers won't really be competing for a title again this year, without an All-NBA-caliber reinforcement in the wings at either position.

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Still, assuming the 25-year-old Haliburton's return is more in line with 15-time All-Star Houston Rockets power forward Kevin Durant's comeback from his own 2019 Achilles tear than with Kobe Bryant's return from his career-changing 2013 tear.

So with some solid free agents still on the market and money left to burn, would the infamously frugal Pacers be open to making a long-term play to help shore up their depth for future seasons beyond 2025-26?

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Caleb Nixon of ClutchPoints writes that free agent former Detroit Pistons marksman Malik Beasley, who had been persona non grata because of a gambling investigation for much of the summer before getting cleared last week, would be a great fit for the Pacers.

"The Indiana Pacers are one of the only playoff teams that can offer Beasley more than $7.2 million per year, according to [ESPN's Shams] Charania," Nixon writes. "The Pacers currently have around $14 million in cap space before they enter the first apron."

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Indiana has multiple avenues through which it could pay Beasley a salary commensurate with his production.

"They have also yet to use their non-taxpayer mid-level exception, meaning their offer for Beasley could range between $10-$14 million per year," Nixon notes. "Without Tyrese Haliburton for much, if not all, of the 2025-26 season, the Pacers need offense."

"If Andrew Nembhard takes over point guard responsibilities, Beasley could stretch the floor and support the Pacers' fast, high-energy offensive attack," Nixon adds.

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