Larry Nance Jr. is the kind of veteran that coaches and front offices like to have on playoff teams: He can give you some backup big minutes during the season, but also is great in the locker room and has seen a lot, he can be a calming influence when needed.
The Indiana Pacers are signing Nance to a veteran minimum contract of $3.9 million, something first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania.
An 11-year veteran, Nance played in 35 games back home in Cleveland last season, missing time largely due to a calf strain. When he did play, he averaged 3.7 points and 2.7 rebounds a game in limited minutes. The concern is his health, he’s played in 59 total games across the past two seasons.
The finances on this will likely mean another move. The Pacers are hard-capped at the first apron and are $1.9 million below that number, according to Spotrac. While a veteran minimum only counts as $2.4 million against the cap (Nance gets paid the full $3.9 million), Indiana needs to make another move to get under that hard cap number. The Pacers have a couple of young players on non- or partially guaranteed deals that could be let go (Micah Potter or Quenton Jackson). Or, Nance could sign an Exhibit 10 version of the contract, which is non-guaranteed and would not count against the cap (because it is generally given to players invited to training camp and headed to the G League, but that is not the case with Nance, the deal could be converted to a standard deal down the line).
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