Pacers salary series: Keeping Up with the Joneses
By Tony East
In this series, 8p9s writer Tony East breaks down the contract situation of each Pacers player. In this edition, we’ll look at the recently signed Joneses.
With training camp fast approaching, the Pacers need to find players to come in and compete for their last roster spot or two. Two players recently chosen to come in and compete for these spots are Trey McKinney-Jones and DeQuan Jones.
Who knows if either of these guys has enough to offer to make the roster, but they will certainly have a chance. McKinney-Jones has thrived in the G-league, scoring over 12 points per game in his three seasons. DeQuan spent a season with the Magic in 2012-13, averaging 10.4 points per 36 minutes in 17 starts.
Both of these players have Pacers ties, per our own Ben Gibson. McKinney-Jones spent 3 seasons with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, and DeQuan played with the Pacers summer league team in 2014.
McKinney-Jones is an athletic scorer who can create his own shot at will. You can often find him putting the ball on the floor and getting to his spot. He does that here before using his athleticism to rise over his defender for a shot:
DeQuan Jones proved in the G-League he can be a scorer from anywhere, posting a true shooting percentage of 59.5 percent. In his rookie season with the Magic, he showed flashes of being a promising NBA player, and threw down a ferocious dunk against the Bulls one night:
Nobody really knows what either of these players can be. Thankfully, they will be given an opportunity in training camp to show what their skills are.
2017-18 season
Both of the Joneses have non-guaranteed training camp deals. They are summer contracts, meaning they don’t affect the cap until the day of the first regular season game. They both are making their minimum possible salary. For McKinney-Jones, that’s $815,615 and for DeQuan that amount is $1,312,611. They both carry no cap hit.
2018 summer and beyond
The 2018 summer is probably a non-factor for either of these guys. They would have to make the team this year, which is certainly possible. But they would probably be the very bottom player on the roster. Even if they do make the team, they would likely get cut before the league-wide cutdown date in January in order to create a roster spot. This roster spot could be used for a 10-day contract, or if the Pacers are overachieving, signing a contributor on the buyout market. Both a 10-day player or a buyout contributor would be more useful than either of the new Joneses.
Prediction time
With two roster spots for some combination of Damien Wilkins, Ben Moore, the two Joneses, and whoever the Pacers sign with their final roster spot, it is tough to predict who exactly will make the team. My guess right now would be Wilkins and Moore, so the two Joneses may have an uphill battle.
Next: All-time Pacers jerseys power rankings
Who knows with the Joneses. If they impress in training camp, we may see these guys in a Pacers uniform for a few months.