Pacers welcome Brown to town, formally announce 5-year max deal to keep Haliburton

(AP) — The Indiana Pacers officially locked up their future Thursday, announcing they had agreed with All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton on a five-year max contract that could pay a franchise record $260 million.

Haliburton’s new deal keeps him with Indiana through 2028-29. He’s been considered the centerpiece of Indiana’s rebuild after he was acquired in a trade with Sacramento before the 2021-22 trade deadline.

Since joining the Pacers, Haliburton has averaged 19.7 points, 10.2 assists and 1.7 steals in 82 games. Last season, he scored a career-high 20.7 points and averaged a league best 10.4 assists but did not qualify for the statistical crown because he needed to play in two more games to meet the NBA’s eligibility standard of 58.

The formal announcement came on the same day Indiana introduced guard Bruce Brown Jr, who agreed to a two-year deal worth $45 million.

Both deals were reached last week in the first hours after teams were allowed to start negotiating with free agents. Brown was a key cog in the Denver Nuggets recent title run.

It’s already been a busy offseason for the Pacers, who selected four players in last month’s NBA draft and made a handful of trades including one last week with the New York Knicks to acquire forward Obi Toppin, a first-round draft pick in 2021 after being selected The Associated Press college basketball player of the year.

The Pacers also recently signed forward Oscar Tshiebwe, AP’s 2022 college basketball player of the year, to a two-way contract.

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