In the final few days before the start of the new NBA season, training camp signings are happening all over the place. And the Indiana Pacers have taken the practice in a new direction.
Among their training camp signings for this season, the Pacers have announced the signing of Kyle Guy, a 6’1 28-year-old shooting specialist. Unusually, however, Guy is not a current and active professional basketball player – instead, he is retired, and is working as a coach at the University of Nevada. Or rather, he was going to be.
Guy’s Previous Playing Career
Guy opted to retire last summer, after a half-season in the EuroLeague, playing for Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos. It was his second year in Europe; before that, he had spent a season in Spain playing with Joventut Badalona – and finished up back there after his Panathinaikos stint, joining up with Iberostar Tenerife – and had prior to that spent his whole professional career in the NBA.
Guy was selected with the 55th pick by the New York Knicks in the 2019 NBA Draft, who promptly traded his rights to the Sacramento Kings along with cash in exchange for those of Ignas Brazdeikis. He spent two seasons with the Kings on a two-way contract, bouncing between Sacramento and its G League affiliate Stockton, before leaving in the summer of 2021.
In 2021â22, Guy joined the Cleveland Cavaliers for training camp, then later hooked on with the Miami Heat for two ten-day contracts and a two-day contract. Over the course of his NBA career – to date, at least – Guy played in 53 games, averaging 3.1 points, 1.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists, shooting 36.1 % from the field and 30.3 % from three-point range. The last of those numbers is the most important.
Guy was drafted on account of his shooting ability. He had been a specialist on Tony Bennett’s Virginia Cavaliers teams, averaging 12,5 points on 42.5% three-point shooting across his three years with the school, and despite not having the size generally required of an NBA shooting specialist, his high-IQ play and proven pedigree got him three years of work where many others could not.
Pacers Bring Coach Back To Play
After he made the surprise decision to retire from playing basketball and transition into coaching, at the age of only 27, Guy returned to Virginia as an Athlete Development Mentor and Special Assistant on Bennettâs staff. After one year of that, Guy had left in April of this year in order to accept an assistant coaching role at Nevada under Steve Alford.
The Pacers are looking at a season of treading water. While they made the NBA Finals last season, the infamous injury to Tyrese Haliburton has put any dreams of a repeat performance to bed, and with Myles Turner allowed to (finally) leave over the summer, it is going to be a gap year for Indiana whether they like it or. A player like Guy will not move the needle either way, as his signing would only be for G League purposes.
Under the terms of an Exhibit 10 deal, Guy will join Indianaâs training camp roster, albeit briefly. Assuming he is waived and opts into the G League assignment with Indiana’s affiliate, the Noblesville Boom, Guy could earn an Exhibit 10 bonus of up to $85,300 (with the exact amount determined in his Pacers contract) if he stays there for at least 60 days.
Perhaps that pays more than Nevada would have done. Perhaps there is still a spark in the playing fire. Or perhaps Guy will shoot like few others can and find himself back in the NBA for a fourth season. Either way, perhaps Nevada should not expect him to be showing up for work any time soon.
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