Kelly Oubre Jr. lands $17 million contract with Pacers

The Indiana Pacers have had a relatively quiet offseason thus far, mostly looking content to run things back with a healthy team in 2026-27 after getting some brutal NBA lottery luck in the spring, which sent their first-round pick to the Los Angeles Clippers. However, that changed when the Pacers made a big signing in free agency on Wednesday afternoon.

“Free agent forward Kelly Oubre Jr. has agreed to a two-year, nearly $17 million deal to sign with the Indiana Pacers, sources tell ESPN,” reported ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania on X, formerly Twitter.

Oubre most recently played for the Philadelphia 76ers, where he was a starter for a team that made the second round of the playoffs this past season, rallying from a 3-1 deficit to upset the Boston Celtics before getting swept by the New York Knicks.

The wing is still a reliable perimeter defender who can knock down open threes, although he was streaky from beyond the arc at times during his stint with the 76ers. Still, the Pacers’ biggest weakness heading into this season is arguably their wing depth, and the signing of Oubre should help shore up that department and give them more length and switchability in their perimeter defense.

Overall, the Pacers figure to be one of the more fascinating teams in the NBA this season, as they look to bounce back from a wretched 2025-26 campaign that was overshadowed by the season-long injury to Tyrese Haliburton. This year, the Pacers will run things back with most of the same core from their 2025 NBA Finals team, along with big man Ivica Zubac, who was acquired from the Clippers last year.

It remains to be seen if the Pacers will make any other moves in this free agency period.