Monta Ellis to sign four-year, $44M deal with Pacers

“Monta Ellis is a guy that can score with the best of them”, said Solomon Hill Friday as the Pacers concluded rookie/free agent camp. That expectation has become a reality.

Shooting guard Monta Ellis agreed to terms with the Pacers on a four-year deal worth $44 million, according to our partners at the IndyStar.

Reports suggest the deal is worth around $44 million. Last season as a member of the Dallas Mavericks, Ellis averaged 18.9 points per game with 4.1 assists. Sacramento also has interest in Ellis and they cleared cap space in a go-for-broke trade with Philly, so the Kings can’t be discounted as a potential landing spot.

Indiana president Larry Bird and coach Frank Vogel want to play smaller and faster next season, and luring Ellis is an important part of the Pacers’ plan. On Thursday, Ellis decided to agree to sign with Indiana.

Both Ellis and the Pacers have verbally agreed to the four year deal but the contract can only be signed by July 9. Ellis shouldn’t have too much trouble playing with a non-traditional point guard in George Hill since he has made a career of sharing the backcourt with ball-dominant guards from Baron Davis to Stephen Curry to Brandon Jennings to Rondo. David West chose to opt out and claimed that the Pacers wouldn’t be legitimate contenders in the upcoming season, but the team is ready to prove his statement wrong after their big free agency addition.

Presumably, though, that number was enough to get Monta on plane so it seems like this reasonable-yet-not-overwhelming offer could have some legs – which seems like a slight bargain at least in the market we’ve seen so far in day one of free agency. Indiana would also have situational players like Joseph Young, Shayne Whittington, and Damjan Rudez, plus who knows who their two other roster filling players could be.

While there is an argument that Ellis would have been better off accepting his option, we explained his decision here.