Analyzing the two-way contracts for the Pacers

On the decision to sign Quenton Jackson and Tristen Newton to two-way contracts, and why Enrique Freeman should be next

By: Caitlin Cooper I @C2_Cooper

After completing a lengthy and exhaustive mailbag for July with a central focus on what comes next for Jarace Walker and Bennedict Mathurin as two potential swing pieces for next season, there were still plenty of Pacers-centric questions leftover that seemed like perfect topics to dive into now that the offseason portion of the offseason is officially in full-swing. As such, some of the submitted inquiries are going to be turned into full-scale articles or mini deep dives over the coming days and weeks, with the latest entry focused on the two-way contracts for the Pacers.

Given that the Pacers just announced the signings of Quenton Jackson and Tristen Newton on two-way contracts, this question, which asked me to fill out the remaining spots with analysis on my selections, is particularly timely.

Frank M. Cook: How would you fill out the roster and the two-way slots? Assume all three two-way slots go to players who were on the summer league team. I have OT, Q, Freeman, and Newton deserving of two-ways but that's one player too many. Which three do you chose and do you waive the fourth player or give him the 15th standard contract?

So, some of this question has already been answered by virtue of the fact that the Pacers signed James Johnson to what is currently the 15th standard contract, along with with Quenton Jackson and Tristen Newton on two-way deals. If the team values Johnson's presence in the locker-room on a team that is already flush with rotation-caliber players, then this is a case in which it's probably just best to trust those who are in the know.

That said, the decision to bring him back also seems like a reflection of the fact that no one else on the Summer League roster impressed enough to warrant taking the final roster spot -- at least not until another roster spot potentially opens up with Kendall Brown currently on a non-guaranteed contract. On that front, after shooting 26.4 percent from three in the G League, Brown shot 3-of-17 on jump-shots in Vegas. As was pointed out in my Summer League preview of the sophomores and veterans, the only role players on Finals rosters over the last five seasons who have shot below 30 percent from three while attempting fewer than 4.0 threes per 36 minutes are Maxi Kleber, who was ramping up from injury, Derrick Jones Jr., who was ignored with aplomb by the Celtics above the break and is now on a different team, and Gary Payton II, who played with Steph Curry (enough said).

Granted, the Pacers aren't exactly primed to make a run to the finals with Brown in the rotation next season, but that's also sort of the point. For the most part, his archetype doesn't tend to exist deep into the playoffs, as teams are generally more apt to hide weak-links who could be targeted on defense than they are to work around defense-first or defense-only players who get ignored on offense -- especially if the defense isn't extraordinarily special. In that regard, this back-to-back sequence at Summer League was telling. On the first possession, despite having yards of space to shoot, Brown pushed off his back foot and ended up stepping out of bounds.

Then, on the next trip down the floor, he made the opposite read -- airmailing a contested three from the same spot on the floor.

If he's going to be an athletic, non-shooting wing, a potential workaround would be to involve him as the screener; however, when he was plugged into the same "c" action that saw Jarace Walker establish deep position for hi-low passes in the opener against Brooklyn, Brown didn't exactly make his presence felt, as the ball instead filtered to the opposite side of the floor.

Meanwhile, while he's capable of making connective passing reads on the move, he can oftentimes be reluctant to handle going to his left and also doesn't have much of a pull-up game to speak of when driving in that direction either. Again, the Pacers need wing-sized wing defenders, of which Brown certainly has the measurables, but his defense isn't so sticky that he should expect to stick around without finding other means to force defenders to stick to him at the other end of the floor.

If he ultimately gets waived, the Pacers would technically have enough roster1\3 spots (one standard and an additional two-way) to keep all four of Enrique Freeman, Oscar Tshiebwe, Tristen Newton, and Quenton Jackson. That said, given that most, if not all of them, would arguably be most likely and, perhaps, better off getting playing time and reps with the Mad Ants, the more prudent move would arguably be to maintain flexibility with the final standard roster spot that could potentially open up from Brown while making a decision on who will join Newton and Jackson on two-way contracts.

Among those four, Freeman is the most intriguing. To understand why, consider how many minutes Tshiebwe played during the fourth quarter in Las Vegas. Here's a rundown by game:

7/12 vs. Brooklyn - 10:00

7/14 vs. Minnesota - 4:34

7/16 vs. Phoenix - 2:14

7/18 vs. Denver - 3:31

7/20 vs. Cleveland - 3:20

Following the opener, Tshiebwe was largely replaced by Freeman in the closing lineup, including in the consolation game against Cleveland, when Ben Sheppard, Jarace Walker, and Johnny Furphy were no longer playing. Just prior to when he was subbed out of that game with under two minutes to play, this was Tshiebwe's final defensive possession of Summer League, which is emblematic of why he seems unlikely to emerge from the depth at center for the Pacers, just as he was already supplanted during crunch-time in Vegas.

When forced to defend the pick-and-pop, he doesn't provide much friction at the level of the screen against the ball-handler nor does he recover out to the screener with anything more than a quick wave. Additionally, anytime he was forced to switch, which was what the Pacers mostly pivoted to with Freeman at the end of games, a lot of assistance was required at the elbows and from one-pass away in the gaps to keep the ball in front.

That's quite a bit different from Freeman, who turned the ball and went to a drop step when isolated against on the wing to block a shot with his off-hand.

Of course, given that the team recently signed James Wiseman to a two-year contract, neither Tshiebwe nor Freeman exactly look poised for a near-term promotion at third-string center, especially since Tschiebwe's value on defense is largely contingent on his team forcing misses and the Pacers don't often force enough. Remember, although Indiana still ranked 24th in opponent offensive rebounding rate after trading for Pascal Siakam, they also ranked 28th in first-chance points allowed per 100 possessions, which means in order for Tshiebwe to finish stops with rebounds, he needs to show that he can make some sort of an impact against ball-screens in manufacturing stops, which Freeman currently appears better equipped to do at the five while also potentially providing some flexibility to play the four. Offensively, Freeman also demonstrated some flashes of versatility, knocking down a three out of the pick-and-pop as well as driving and finishing at the rim with his off-hand, whereas Tshiebwe remains mostly tethered to the dunker's spot as a putback machine, although he was the most polished playmaking big with regard to facilitating from the elbows.

Between the two of them, Freeman is the more likely to have a chance at upward mobility with the Pacers and the same could potentially be said of Quenton Jackson, albeit for much different reasons. Jackson was sloppy with the ball in the opening game of Summer League, as he committed nine turnovers, but he's a dynamic slashing guard who was pressed into masquerading as a lead ball-handler. Over the final four games, he tightened up the ball security, and he posted an overall effective field-goal percentage of 70.3 percent -- which led all scorers for the Pacers at Summer League.

At the other end of the floor, for a team that recorded more than 400 possessions of press during the playoffs, Jackson could often be seen playing the role of full-court pest, upping the intensity and turning the ball with his pressure.

Granted, the Pacers already arguably have more guards than they can play, but the point is that, if emergency depth was needed for some reason, Jackson appears as though he could actually play at the next level. By comparison, as the G League Rookie of the Year, Tshiebwe provides the Mad Ants with a steady contributor inside for his developing teammates but could potentially siphon minutes from evaluating Freeman at the five in spots on that roster without much likelihood of stepping in ahead of Myles Turner, Isaiah Jackson, James Wiseman, and Obi Toppin/Pascal Siakam at the five with the Pacers.

As for Tristen Newton, he still needs to adapt to processing the game on the fly and reading/manipulating the low-man. During Summer League, he was at times throwing pocket passes that should've been skip passes and skip passes that should've been pocket passes, while also putting to test the notion that "jump passes are good now." They are, of course, so long as the following criterion are met: 1) The player is Tyrese Haliburton, who is obviously an icon of basketball counterculture, or 2) The player jumps because they have an idea, not because they ran out of ideas. The latter too often applies to Newton. Still, despite the fact that he struggled to handle against extended ball-pressure in the game against Minnesota and only connected on four of his 22 jump-shots, he went 25-of-28 at the charity stripe, posting a free throw attempt rate of 70 percent -- which led the Summer League roster.

Even when his defender ducks under, he has a knack for seeking contact with his unpredictable change of direction and long, loping strides.

That's a skill that can translate to the next level, especially if he can get his defender on his back more often with the threat of his shot. On that front, although Kendall Brown hasn't exactly made the leap, several players have demonstrated progress as shooters for the Pacers, including but not limited to Jarace Walker, Obi Toppin, and Andrew Nembhard. The same results aren't guaranteed to materialize for Newton, but he at least demonstrated the ability to drive in different directions and at more than one speed than Brown.

All things considered, with his already existing flair for advance passes and the opportunity to develop his feel for wheeling-and-dealing in the G League, Newton is similar to Jackson in that there are at least the vague outlines of how he might eventually plug into the play-style of the Pacers, although neither offers as much size or potential defensive versatility as Freeman.

At any rate, if selecting only from the Summer League roster, Freeman, along with the already existing signings of Jackson and Newton, are the three who arguably make the most sense to be in the pipeline for the Pacers on two-way deals, and if any of them impress, then maybe, just maybe, they can take Kendall Brown's potentially open roster spot as next season's Kendall Brown, only (hopefully) with more clarity and longevity as an archetype.