INDIANAPOLIS -- Former Indiana Pacers power forward David West has officially decided to opt-out of his final year player option. He will become an unrestricted free agent at the beginning of June if he decides to continue his playing career. It is surprising that he declined $12.6 million in guranteed money at the age of 35, however, it could be an indication that he's either retiring or going to a more ready contender.
There has been no official statement from David West or his agent regarding the situation. The following outcomes are still possible regarding his future: (1) West signs with a more contending ready team. (2) West re-signs with the Pacers for less money and for a short term deal. (3) West decides to retire. Until their is more information regarding the situation, all possibilities should be considered possible.
David West did the Pacers a major favor by making his decision before the draft. This allows for the Pacers to have an extra $12.6 million to work with in trade negotiations, which drastically helps the team's odds of being able to find a working deal to either trade up or down in the draft. If West would've waited until after the draft to make his decision, none of this would be possible.
Since there hasn't been an official statement from either West or his agent, we won't know his reasoning for declining his option. It could very well be that the Pacers' indications of wanting to play at a high tempo affected his decision. Also, the Pacers did state that they had interest in playing smaller, faster, and even playing Paul George at the power forward position in small ball lineups. That could have also affected his reasoning too.
If the Pacers truly want to play faster and smaller full time, playing Paul George at power forward and running a '4-out, 1-in' offense would make sense. If this is the case, Indiana should draft an athletic big man and then sign a perimeter play maker in free agency to complete their starting lineup. If Roy Hibbert opts out, then the team could think about 'big-fish' free agents, but until then they can't. Also, Indiana would have more than enough assets to re-sign key bench players. This is all of course since the Pacers won't be hearing from Hibbert until after the draft regarding his decision for his $15.5 million player option. If Hibbert decided prior to the draft, then the Pacers would have more freedom to go 'best-available' and then chase a major free agent center if he opted-out.
There are also options for the Pacers if they are not fully comitted to the idea of playing Paul George at power forward full time. They could sign a free agent like Thaddeus Young to play a role as an athletic power forward that can space the floor in an up-tempo offense. That would allow for Indiana to keep Paul George at small forward. Indiana would still be able to draft an athletic center to complete their starting lineup, but they wouldn't be able to sign a play-maker like Monta Ellis.
Of course the options open up immensely if Hibbert were to decide on his player option before the NBA draft, however, getting him to opt-out after the draft would still provide many options for a quick roster 'reconstruction'. It seems that the common denominator for a quick roster rebuild would have to be drafting an athletic center, then surverying their options after Hibbert's player option decision. Regardless of Hibbert's decision, the Pacers have a good amount of high quality options to work with.
With the Mid-Level Exception and the Bi-Annual Exception, the Pacers could re-sign Rodney Stuckey, Lavoy Allen, and potentially even Donald Sloan. That would fill out the team's bench, with it being: Sloan, Stuckey, Solomon Hill, Allen, and Ian Mahinmi. Indiana could then use their salary cap space to sign someone like Monta Ellis to complete the starting lineup. If Indiana doesn't have enough with their exceptions to re-sign Sloan after re-signing Allen and Stuckey, they could use their remaining cap space after signing Ellis. If Hibbert opts in, Indiana should seriously consider playing George at power forward. If Hibbert opted-out, the team should still try and play George at power forward if they can't sign Thaddeus Young. Indiana should also use their second round pick to draft a backup athletic center, then trade Mahinmi to clear more cap.
For hypothetical reasons, let's say Hibbert opts in, here could be a potential depth chart:
PG: George Hill, Donald Sloan
SG: Monta Ellis, Rodney Stuckey
SF: C.J. Miles, Solomon Hill
PF: Paul George, Lavoy Allen
C: Roy Hibbert, Willie Cauley-Stein/Dakari Johnson
Regardless of Hibbert's decision, he likely won't be a member of the Pacers for much longer. The team will most likely explore trade scenarios if he opts in with the team. If Hibbert does decide to opt-out, Indiana would have more freedom to explore free agency options, for example Thaddeus Young. Indiana would still have most of the offensive benefits of playing George at power forward in a 4-out, 1-in offense, but they would face less defensive liability when facing elite small forwards. It would basically be up to the matchup to decide the lineup. Regardless, Indiana should be able to construct a very good starting lineup while still retaining key bench components. Keep in mind, drafting an athletic center would be a great way of getting Hibbert angry and ultimately opting-out.
Here would be the projected depth chart if Hibbert opts-out and the Pacers target reasonable free agents:
PG: George Hill, Rodney Stuckey
SG: Monta Ellis, C.J. Miles
SF: Paul George, Solomon Hill
PF: Thaddeus Young, Lavoy Allen
C: Willie Cauley-Stein, Dakari Johnson
As for David West, he could sign with a contending team like the Houston Rockets. They need a stretch-4 that can defend the post and knock down mid-range jumpers to space the floor for Dwight Howard. He would be a great fit for the Rockets and could provide veteran leadership that the team needs to make a run at the NBA title. Either way, it appears that David West opting out was a win-win for both sides.
There are not many things that are certain for the Pacers' short future, but one thing is for sure, they certainly have a lot of options and variables ahead of themselves.