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Do Pacers Fans Want Roy Hibbert in Indiana Long-Term?

By Jared Wade

Dec 20, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) during the game against the Denver Nuggets at Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 20, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) during the game against the Denver Nuggets at Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports /
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We did a bit of a point/counter point earlier today on the merits of Roy Hibbert having a long-term future on the Indiana Pacers.

On the one hand, he is arguably the best rim protector in the NBA and was the core of the league’s best defense for years. On the other, he is inconsistent, can hurt the offense, and earns $15 million a year.

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Read the piece to see both sides of the debate.

But since we’re only two people, we also asked folks on Twitter for their views. #RoyStay or #RoyGo sparked a bit of discussion, and by my unscientific calculations, it seems as though more people want the big lug to stick around.

The discussion also reminded me that a lot of people struggle to understand salary cap realities, the going market for player salaries, and the difference between the league’s collective bargaining agreement and the new television rights deal.

Sometimes people make me feel like Michael Bluth in this clip.

So just a few relevant points on those issues first, since obviously whether the Pacers should continue to employ Roy Hibbert hinges, at least in part, on how much they will have to pay him.

  • Roy Hibbert is making $14.9 million this season and will make $15.5 million next season if he doesn’t use his opt out clause this summer
  • If Hibbert opts out, the Pacers will have some salary cap room this summer, but not a ton in a practical sense. They will likely be at about $48 million in committed payroll for 2015-16, and that may be up to $18-20 million below the cap. But they would only have 7 players on the roster and they would need to use that $18-20 million to sign at least six and more likely eight players. Even if they are willing to have a few minimum salary guys, and use the mid-level exception to go above the cap, they will still likely need to get three or four players with that $18-20 million. Some other teams might try to lure a big name with most of that money then spend a pittance on filler players. It’s possible Indiana would do this, but they would (a) probably have trouble convincing any big name to sign with the Pacers, (b) this isn’t the best free agent year anyway, (c) this franchise generally doesn’t aim for big splashes like that and instead doles out several smaller deals on players it likes as we saw last year with Miles, Stuckey, Rudez rather than overspending on Lance, and (d) Roy is almost certainly not opting out, so this is mostly moot.
  • The current collective bargaining agreement (CBA) runs through 2021. Either the players or the owners could opt out after 2016-17, however, and the players will probably do that. But the current CBA will govern all aspects of the league until after the 2016-17 season.
  • The NBA signed a new television rights deal with ABC/ESPN and TNT last summer. At $24 billion over nine years, It will roughly triple the income the league, and each team, currently receives from broadcast rights. This will increase the size of the salary cap dramatically in the future, but that increase will not come until the 2015-16 season. So next year will still be business as usual, with a normal increase in the cap. The summer of 2016 is when we will likely see a one-year rise in the cap that gives teams a ton more money to spend in free agency (and this rise may even be gradually implemented over several offseasons if the owners get their way).

OK, that’s probably more than enough to know. But it is important stuff vis-a-vis what Roy Hibbert making $15 million per year means and what his next contract is likely to pay him (which is probably something similar if perhaps a tad less, in my estimation).

So with no further ado, here is what some people think about Hibbert’s future in Indiana.

#RoyStay or #RoyGo?

Next: Should Roy Hibbert Stay or Should He Go?

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