The Indiana Pacers have signed rookie guard Darius McGhee to an Exhibit 10 contract, per sources. McGee, 24, went undrafted out of Liberty University. The North Carolina native made 132 starts in 168 career appearances with Liberty across five seasons, averaging 16 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 steals per game.
Training camp deals are one-year, minimum-salary contracts. An Exhibit 10 contract can be converted into a two-way deal before the regular season begins. If he makes the cut, McGhee will spend most of his time with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Indiana’s NBA G League affiliate.
If Darius McGhee is waived by the Pacers, he will be eligible to receive a bonus worth up to $75,000 by re-joining the Mad Ants and spending at least 60 days with the minor league team. Exhibit 10 contracts are non-guaranteed, allowing teams to waive the signee without taking a cap hit.
Moreover, McGhee made 29 starts with Liberty during his junior 2020-21 season. The 5-foot-9 guard averaged 15.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 30.2 minutes per game. On Jan. 15, 2022, he scored a school-record 48 points, including 37 in the second half, in a 78-75 win over Florida Gulf Coast.
During his final season of collegiate eligibility, McGhee reached several milestones and set multiple school records. In Liberty’s 80-53 win over Delaware State on Nov. 26, 2022, he scored 23 points, passing the 2,000-point milestone of his NCAA career. Although, it was still too early to celebrate.
On Feb. 4, 2023, the guard became the Flames’ all-time leading scorer, surpassing Karl Hess, who had played for the Flames from 1976 to 1980 when Liberty was an NAIA team. Additionally, he became the ASUN’s all-time scoring leader in an 85-77 victory over Queens (NC) on Feb. 22, breaking Willie Jackson’s record.
As a matter of fact, he became the fourth Division I men’s player to score 500 career 3-pointers in the same game. On Feb. 27, McGhee was named ASUN Player of the Year for the third consecutive season. Not to mention, he received a third straight all-conference first-team selection as well.
Notwithstanding a couple of struggles earlier in his college career, McGhee is an NBA-ready guard. In the 2023 NBA 2K24 Summer League with the Pacers, the guard averaged 6.5 points, 1.0 rebound, 2.0 assists, and 12.8 minutes per game in two appearances. McGhee also shot 23.1% from the floor and 85.7% at the foul line.
Furthermore, all three of the Pacers’ two-way spots are occupied. Forwards Kendall Brown and Oscar Tschiebwe are signed to deals. Plus, guard Isaiah Wong signed a two-way contract with the team in July.
Equally important, a two-way roster cut is possible after training camp. This will allow an Exhibit 10 signee to convert his deal into a two-way contract. However, the Pacers could offer that spot to some other training camp player.
Originally posted on basketballinsiders.com