The Pacers announced today in a press release they had signed Andrew Bynum for the remainder of the season. Reports suggest they’ll pay him $1 million to finish out the year in a Pacers uniform. Bynum had been without a team over the last month after he was included in the Luol Deng trade, sending him to Chicago. The Bulls immediately cut him to fall under the tax.
Pacers President of Basketball Operations, Larry Bird, said in the press release, “We are obviously happy to have him join our team. He gives us added size, he is a skilled big man and he has championship experience. With the minutes he gets, he should be a valuable addition.”
Bynum added, “It really wasn’t a hard decision, I think it’s the right fit for me and, in all honesty, I think we’ve got the best chance of winning. It will be great to back up Roy and I’ll do whatever I can to help this team.”
The Pacers didn’t release specifics of the deal, but a source tells ESPN’s Brian Windhorst they’ll pay him $1 million using their mid-level exception.
The Pacers gave Andrew Bynum $1 million for the rest of season from their mid-level exception, according to a source.
— Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) February 1, 2014
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Bynum missed all of last season when he was dealt to Philadelphia as part of the package that brought Dwight Howard to the Lakers for one abortive year before he signed with Houston this summer as a free agent. This summer, Bynum chose to sign Cleveland with an incentive-laden contract that was only fractionally guaranteed.
During 24 games this season with Cleveland, Bynum averaged 8.4 points and 5.3 rebounds in 20 minutes per game this season. He’ll backup All-Star center Roy Hibbert in Indiana. The addition of Bynum — who was let go from Cleveland before the Deng trade — adds a volatile element to the chemistry of the team with the best record in the East and the second best record in the NBA.
I can imagine Pacers prez Larry Bird telling Bynum he'll either be a good teammate or an ex-teammate. Bird risking precious Pacers chem …
— Brian K. Schmitz (@MagicInsider) February 1, 2014
Andrew Bynum signed by #Pacers for rest of year. Phil Jackson tells @FOXSports he doesn't know what happened w #Cavs. "It was unfortunate."
— Sam Amico (@SamAmicoFSO) February 1, 2014
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But Bynum’s departure from Cleveland has been cast in a new light as the Cavs continue to lose despite acquiring Deng. There’s the idea that Bynum didn’t want to deal with all the losing that came in Cleveland this season, plus various other headaches, especially Kyrie Irving‘s tenuous future, as Fox Sports Ohio’s Sam Amico tweets:
Bynum has been good soldier, even privately, about stint w #Cavs, source says. Says guys don't know how to win, frustration aimed at Kyrie.
— Sam Amico (@SamAmicoFSO) February 1, 2014
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Some believe Indiana signed Bynum simply to keep him away from their Eastern Conference rivals, Miami, but when asked about this, Larry Bird quickly dismissed the notion:
"I don't know who came up with that, but that's about the dumbest thing I've ever heard." Bird on signing Bynum to keep him from MIA
— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) February 1, 2014
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What do you think of the signing?
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