Indiana Pacers salary series: Doug McDermott
By Tony East
What contract comes next for Doug McDermott?
This is harder to say since we have no idea how McD is going to perform over the next three seasons.
However, we can guesstimate. McDermott is 26 now, meaning he will be 29 when his current contract expires. 29 is usually around the age that players cash in on their last big contract, and McDermott could be in the same boat.
But McDermott is different in that his most marketable skill is one that doesn’t typically dimish with age. If you can shoot, you can shoot. Kyle Korver has been getting paid into his late 30s for this reason. Because of this, you can expect McDermott to get another decent contract when he turns 29.
If he can hone some other skills in his next trio of seasons, it isn’t unreasonable to think McDermott could pull in a three-year, $30-35 million deal in the summer of 2021. If he remains only effective as a shooter, he will still likely be able to get a longer deal, just with fewer dollars. Perhaps a three-year deal worth between $20-25 million could come next for him.
Again, it’s impossible to guess since it is three seasons away. But McD has an important skill, and he will be paid to do it for the entirety of his career.