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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 24: Braden Smith is drafted 38th overall by the Chicago Bulls and traded to the Indiana Pacers in Round Two of the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 24, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Caleb Bowlin\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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INDIANAPOLIS \u2013 The Indiana Pacers selected former Purdue guard Braden Smith with the 38th pick<\/a> in the NBA Draft on Wednesday, a selection Indiana acquired thanks to a draft-night trade<\/a> with the Chicago Bulls.<\/p>\n Smith, who turns 23 later this month, spent four years in college, all with the Boilermakers. He holds the NCAA Men\u2019s Division I record for career assists and averaged 14.3 points 8.8 assists per game in his most recent season. Smith\u2019s passing and intangibles played a big part in getting drafted by Indiana.<\/p>\n Early second-round picks like Smith come with some contractual advantages<\/a> for NBA teams. They can start at a low salary while signing a longer contract, a boon for the drafting franchise. Yet the Pacers, who have a total team salary that is rubbing right up against the projected luxury tax line for the coming season, currently plan to sign Smith to a two-way contract<\/a>.<\/p>\n Players who sign two-way deals typically spend time going back and forth between their NBA team and G League affiliate \u2013 in the case of the Pacers, that\u2019s the Noblesville Boom. Such contracts give players more chances to develop, but they are in turn limited to just 50 active games in a season while on a two-way deal.<\/p>\n Two-way contract signees aren\u2019t eligible to play in the playoffs, either. They are most often used as a player development tool, though teams sometimes use them to add another lightly-proven veteran depth piece.<\/p>\n \u201cWe wanted to get a two-way potential player [at the] point guard position. After what we\u2019ve gone through the last couple years with our point guard spot, you feel like [we] need another guy there if at all possible,\u201d Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan said of his team\u2019s goals in the draft.<\/p>\n When asked later for more details on the two-way contract element of this, Buchahan noted that no contract was finalized. But he did share that the Pacers wanted to increase their flexibility going into the offseason, and putting Smith on a two-way agreement would do that. Two-way deals don\u2019t count against the salary cap and aren\u2019t a standard roster spot \u2013 now, the Pacers have an additional spot on their 15-man roster and more spending power.<\/p>\n That\u2019s because in order to get Smith, they sent away a player on a standard contract. Kam Jones, the 38th pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, went from Indiana to Chicago in the trade along with draft assets and cash considerations. Jones departing gives the Pacers more optionality, and that is even more true with Smith heading toward a two-way deal.<\/p>\n Purdue guard Braden Smith (3) dribbles during the second half in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA college basketball tournament against Texas, Thursday, March 26, 2026, in San Jose, Calif. (AP Photo\/Godofredo A. V\u00e1squez)<\/p>\n Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved<\/p>\n Players on two-way contracts are paid half of the minimum salary for a player with zero years of NBA service. In 2026-27, that will be just over $679k. Teams are permitted to sign three players to two-way deals at the same time.<\/p>\n Last year, Indiana ended the season with Taelon Peter, Ethan Thompson, and Jalen Slawson on two-way pacts. Thompson and Peter signed two-year contracts with the Pacers and are still currently on a two-way agreement while Slawson is set to enter free agency. The Pacers have a few days to decide if they want to make him a restricted free agent or not \u2013 regardless of their choice, one of those three players is set to be replaced by Smith.<\/p>\n