Former Cat earns full-time contract with Pacers
Alex Poythress, the former Kentucky standout who has been splitting time between the G League and the Indiana Pacers this season, was signed to a full-time contract by the Pacers on Thursday.
OFFICIAL: We have signed forward Alex Poythress to a contract. @AlexTheGreat22 has been a two-way player this season, splitting time between us and @TheMadAnts. He will no longer be a two-way player.https://t.co/Qdh0BppqWD
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) December 28, 2017
The 6-foot-7 forward averaged 20 points and nine rebounds in six games for Indiana’s G League affiliate club, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. He has appeared in 11 games for the Pacers this season, playing limited minutes, but got a season-high 22 minutes against Detroit on Tuesday, scoring four points and grabbing two rebounds.
Prior to the season, Poythress signed a “two-way contract” with the Pacers, allowing the team to roster him on the parent club, but have him also play for its G League team at a salary lower than the NBA minimum. Poythress, 24, will no longer be a two-way player under his new deal, but terms of the contract were not disclosed.
Poythress spent most of last season playing for Fort Wayne, where he averaged 18.5 points and 7.1 rebounds in 46 games and was named a G League All-Star. He also had a brief stint with the Philadelphia 76ers last season where averaged 10.7 points and 4.8 rebounds in six games.
A four-year player for Kentucky, Poythress was an academic All-American as a senior and played in 112 career games, averaging averaged 8.6 points and 5.3 rebounds in a career split by a knee injury. He was a member of two Final Four teams.
Jared Peck: 859-231-1333, @JPSaysHere
This story was originally published December 28, 2017 at 1:34 PM with the headline "Former Cat earns full-time contract with Pacers."