The Pacers have withdrawn their two-way qualifying offer to forward Enrique Freeman, making him an unrestricted free agent, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac.
Freeman, who will turn 25 on Tuesday, was the 50th overall pick in the 2024 draft and appeared in 22 NBA games as a rookie for Indiana, averaging 2.1 points and 1.4 rebounds in 8.2 minutes per contest.
While Freeman’s impact at the NBA level was very limited, he played well in the G League, averaging 16.9 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.4 blocks per game in 14 outings for the Indiana Mad Ants last season. He also had a strong Summer League showing in Las Vegas this month, registering averages of 16.6 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 2.0 APG, and 1.8 BPG with an incredible 72.5% mark on field goal attempts, including 55.6% on three-pointers.
However, RayJ Dennis and Quenton Jackson hold two of the Pacers’ two-way slots and it appears likely that second-round pick Taelon Peter will get the third, as general manager Chad Buchanan confirmed during a recent appearance on the Setting The Pace podcast (YouTube link). That left Freeman as the odd man out.
The deadline to unilaterally withdraw a restricted free agent’s qualifying offer passed earlier this month, but teams are still permitted to rescind those QOs with the player’s consent, so it’s safe to assume Freeman signed off on this move. Becoming an unrestricted free agent will allow him to choose his next opportunity without Indiana controlling the process.
Unless there’s a standard contract offer out there, I have no idea why these two-way players sit on their QOs and don’t take them. It’s a free $85k. If a team doesn’t want you, they will just cut you and you get free $$$. Like Mac McClung earlier, he never accepted his Two-Way QO, now he has nothing. It’s not like he’s playing in the NBA, he will just be in the G-League making a like a $40k salary. And obviously $85k is nothing for NBA players, but a lot of these guys might never play in another NBA game again. If you look at these guys career earnings, there’s no way they should be turning down an $85k bonus. These borderline NBA players need better guidance from agents.
The 85K isn’t guaranteed. Guarantees UP TO 85K are negotiated in.
link to sportsbusinessclassroom.com
Freeman and MacClung had no guarantees. Hence why they were sitting on the QO. Signing it early just gives the team control.
Two-way qualifying offers include a partial guarantee ($85,300 this year).