Bojan Bogdanovic joining the Indiana Pacers at the right price
By Ben Gibson
The Indiana Pacers signed Bojan Bogdanovic to a two-year, $21 million deal according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the Indiana Pacers are signing Bojan Bogdanovic to a two-year, $21 million deal.
And perhaps for the first time this offseason, fans might be happy with one of Kevin Pritchard’s moves. Despite your feelings on the draft or other signings, bringing in Bogdanovic is a solid move for the Pacers going forward.
For the record, we are talking about Bojan Bogdanovic, a small forward formerly of Brooklyn Nets and Washington Wizards, not current Detroit Pistons center Boban Marjanovic, or this guy, Bogdan Bogdanovich. By name, they can be easily confused.
Free agent Bojan Bogdanovic has agreed to a two-year, $21M deal with the Indiana Pacers, league source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 7, 2017
Bogdanovic is a solid shooter, knocking down 44.5% of his shots from the field and 36.7% from beyond the arc last season.
Bojan Bogdanovic's shot chart from last season. pic.twitter.com/p6yfdpmcCz
— 8 Points, 9 Seconds (@8pts9secs) July 7, 2017
He averaged 13.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists while playing 25.7 minutes a game.
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If nothing else, he should knock down shots from range while finishing at the rim. Here’s what Mark Deeks said about him in his NBA Manifesto.
"A much needed bench scorer acquired at the deadline, who provided some efficient outside shooting and some craft around the basket. It was all very streaky, because Bogdanovic is always streaky, yet he provided something off the bench where so many others had provided nothing.Bogdanovic’s defence is always going to be exploitable, but he is in the rare positioning of entering his prime and restricted free agency at the same time."
As Deeks points out, his defense is suspect, but one can hope coaching and teammates can help alleviate that weakness.
The move also deserves praise for risking little both in terms of money and years. If it doesn’t work out, then the Pacers lost little. If Bogdanovic outplays his contract, then it is a steal and maybe he sticks around on his next one.
Next: Pacers hedging their bet on Edmond Sumner
Bogdanovic doesn’t have any baggage and shoots the ball well, something most Indiana Pacers fans should be happy to see.