Alex Poythress is back within the Pacers organization. The team announced on Tuesday that they signed the 6-foot-7 forward to a two-way contract.
Most recently, Poythress played for the Philadelphia 76ers in the Las Vegas Summer League.
Earlier this summer, they signed rookie Edmond Sumner to the franchise’s first two-way deal.
With a two-way deal, which were created under a new Collective Bargaining Agreement, Poythress may spend up to 45 days up with the Pacers — not including training camp and the time before the Mad Ants open camp. At minimum, he will earn $75,000. Another NBA franchise may not call him up, unlike Exhibit 10 affiliate contracts.
Teams may sign two players to two-way contracts and they do not count against the salary cap.
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— Alex Poythress (@AlexTheGreat22) August 22, 2017
Last season, his rookie year after going undrafted, the Kentucky product was in training camp with the Pacers. They gave him $35,381 in guaranteed money, and then waived him after several weeks.
Poythress then appeared in 46 games with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, where he averaged 18.5 points and 7.1 rebounds per game shooting 52.7 percent from the floor. He was selected to be a D-League All-Star (although he didn’t play), and was a participant in the Slam Dunk contest.
Late in the season, on April 1st, he was called up by the 76ers and played in six games. During that stint, he averaged 10.7 points and 4.8 rebounds.
“Going through the draft process, [the Pacers] really liked me,” Poythress told me one year ago. “I’m just trying to make best of this opportunity.”