July 21: Indiana has a team option on the fourth year of Nembhard’s deal, the 2025/26 season, sources tell Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files.
July 20: The Pacers are signing second-rounder Andrew Nembhard to a four-year, $8.6MM deal, his agents Jaafar Choufani and Todd Ramasar tell ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link).
Nembhard’s deal includes $6.4MM in guaranteed money over the first three years, which is the most ever for a second-round pick who attended college, Givony reports. As ESPN’s Bobby Marks observes (via Twitter), Nembhard will receive more guaranteed money than several first-round picks, whose contracts are only guaranteed for the first two seasons (years three and four being team options), though that is slightly misleading because Nembhard’s guarantee is spread out over three years instead of two.
After a strong showing at the draft combine, the 22-year-old shot up draft boards, going from a possible late second-rounder to a borderline first-round selection. He was ultimately taken with the first pick of the second round, 31st overall.
The 6’5″ guard spent four years in college, the first two with Florida and then the final two with Gonzaga after transferring before his junior season. In 32 games (32.2 MPG) with the Bulldogs last season, Nembhard averaged 11.8 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 5.8 APG and 1.6 SPG on .452/.383/.873 shooting. He also posted a very solid assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.97-to-1, a strong benchmark for a lead ball-handler.
Once Nembhard’s deal is official, the Pacers will still have one draft pick who is unsigned — Kendall Brown, the 48th selection. The Pacers have an opening on the 15-man roster and both two-way spots available, so either might be a possibility for the athletic forward out of Baylor.
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