Pacers annouce summer league roster and have international play coming, too

The Indiana Pacers summer league schedule and roster has been announced. Four of the team's rostered players will suit up for international play this week. Suddenly, basketball is right around the corner even with free agency underway.

Summer league – in Las Vegas, at least – starts in six days. The Pacers revealed their roster on Tuesday, and it features multiple players who spent last year in the organization's orbit plus recent draft pick Braden Smith.

The summer Pacers:

Keion Brooks Jr.
Cameron Hildreth
MJ Iraldi
Yuki Kawamura
Keba Keita
Taevion Kinsey
Tamin Lipsey
Rienk Mast
Gabe McGlothan
Taelon Peter
Alex Reese
Kowacie Reeves, Jr.
Jalen Slawson
Braden Smith
Jalen Warley

Peter, Slawson, and McGlothan spent time with the Pacers last season and will get more chances to prove themselves to the franchise. Peter is currently signed to a two-way contract while Slawson earned a two-way qualifying offer from the franchise earlier this week, making him a restricted free agent. More on him, and that dynamic, in a moment.

Brooks Jr (Pelicans), Kawamura (Grizzlies and Bulls), and Reese (Thunder and 76ers) all have previous NBA experience and should be the standouts among the new players in Indiana's scope.

Smith will be a focus as the team's only drafted rookie. How he fits in a new system will be worth keeping an eye on, as will his effectiveness against bigger, faster players compared to the college level. He's expected to be on a two-way contract with the Pacers.

The Pacers summer league schedule is out, too. They'll play five times in total, but only four of them are scheduled so far.

Friday, July 10: Pacers vs Cavaliers. 4:30 PM ET on ESPN2.
Saturday, July 11: Pacers vs 76ers. 5:30 PM ET on Prime Video.
Monday, July 13: Pacers vs Raptors. 4:30 PM ET on ESPN2.
Wednesday, July 15: Pacers vs Timberwolves. 3:30 PM ET on Prime Video.

Then, a consolation round game (or the title game match!) at some point between July 17 and 19. It will be a good stretch of time for the Pacers to make decisions about their two-way contract slots and evaluate some current and future Boom players.

Pacers assistant coach Johnny Carpenter, who joined the bench last summer, will be the head coach for the group.

The most notable omission from the summer Pacers roster is Ethan Thompson, who is currently signed to a two-way contract. But his absence is for other basketball reasons: He's playing for the Puerto Rican National Team in World Cup Qualifying play instead, per a report from Alex Golden in Pacers On SI. Thompson and Peter are currently signed to two-way deals while Smith is expected to get one. Slawson, because of his qualifying offer, will be looking to earn one of those slots.

That's four players competing for three two-way spots and is among the biggest storylines for the summer Pacers, especially as one of the four players will be playing elsewhere. Speaking of international play for the Pacers...

Who is suiting up for their national teams this summer?

Thompson, as mentioned, is going to play for Puerto Rico. They play against Canada (more to come on them) at 7:10 tonight, then battle the Bahamas next Monday.

It's a cool opportunity for Thompson, and his brother Stephen is also on the roster – as is former Pacers forward Enrique Freeman. Thompson had a chance to play an NBA preseason game in Puerto Rico last October while with the Miami Heat.

Jay Huff, meanwhile, will be playing for Team USA in the same competition. He's the only active NBA player on the squad.

Huff had a similar experience with the red, white, and blue back in 2023 ahead of the previous World Cup. It's a major opportunity for the five-year pro, who just wrapped up his first season with the Pacers.

Speaking of the Pacers, there are many players with ties to the franchise joining Huff on the Team USA squad. Gabe York (Pacers, 2022 and 2023), Torrey Craig (Pacers, 2021-22), Pedro Bradshaw (Mad Ants, 2021-2024), Terry Taylor (Pacers, 2021-2023), and Jarrod Uthoff (Pacers preseason and training camp, 2017) will represent the United States along with Huff.

Andrew Nembhard will suit up for Team Canada, meaning he and Thompson will face off tonight. Canada then plays Jamaica next Monday night.

Nembhard is joined by his brother, Ryan, on the squad. Pacers assistant Jenny Boucek paid them a visit, per a post on her own Twitter feed.

Other active NBA players on the squad include Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dillon Brooks, Kyshawn George, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Leonard Miller.

The final Pacer involved in international competition: Ivica Zubac. He'll suit up for Croatia in World Cup qualifiers, and their first game is... right now, as I type this, against Cyprus.

Zubac will be joined by Dario Saric and Karlo Matkovic as active NBA talents on the team. After today, Zubac and company won't play again until next Monday when they take on Israel.

I'll try to take in as much international ball as I can, and summer league practice starts today. Even as the Pacers add talent in free agency, there's still plenty to keep up with on the court. Sign up to not miss any of it.