27-year old point guard T.J. Ford is without a doubt going to pick up his player option for the 2010-11 season as there is no way a team would give him that much money on the open market. Ford played in 47 games (32 starts) for the Pacers last season and he averaged 25.3 minutes, 10.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. Because of his size (6′0″, 165 pounds) it always seems as if Ford gets beat up a lot. He has now played in 374 games (303 starts) in his NBA career (7 years) and he is averaging 29.2 minutes, 12.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game. Ford is by far the best point guard the Pacers have so they should just play him until he gets hurt.

The Pacers have released backup point guard Travis Diener. Diener played in 4 games (0 starts) for the Pacers this season and he averaged 6.3 minutes, 0.8 points, 0.5 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. Diener played in 125 games (21 starts) in his three years with the Pacers and he averaged 16.8 minutes, 5.3 points, 1.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. Diener was buried on the depth chart at point guard this season for the Pacers so they did him a favor by releasing him. Look for him to hook on with a playoff type team looking for a backup guard.

The Pacers have signed 26-year old shooting guard Luther Head to a 1-year deal. Head played in 32 games (4 starts) for the Rockets and Heat last season and he averaged 15.5 minutes, 4.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. Head has now played in 265 games (58 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 24.1 minutes, 8.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. Despite having a reputation of being a good three point shooter, Head has only hit 39.2% of his shots over his career from that distance. This was a nice signing for the bench.

The Pacers have lost free agents Jarrett Jack (Toronto), Rasho Nesterovic (Toronto) and Marquis Daniels (Boston). While none of those three players are elite they all were contributors for the Pacers last season. The Pacers also finally cut ties with point guard Jamaal Tinsley and that’s a good thing. The Pacers did get two players who could help them this season in the NBA Draft. 1st round pick Tyler Hansbrough was the best player in college basketball last season and he should move right into the starting lineup at power forward. A.J. Price was picked in the second round and he will likely start out the season #3 on the depth chart there behind T.J. Ford and Earl Watson. G/F Dahntay Jones, PG Earl Watson and C/F Solomon Jones were all signed as free agents by the Pacers and they should all contribute off the bench. The Pacers also re-signed PF Josh McRoberts who will likely be buried on the bench.

FRONT OFFICE GRADE SO FAR THIS OFF-SEASON: C-

The Pacers have signed 25-year old forward/center Solomon Jones to a 2-year contract. Jones played in 63 games (0 starts) for the Hawks last season and he averaged 10.7 minutes, 3.0 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. Jones has now played in 156 games (8 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 9.5 minutes, 2.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. Jones is always around the basket and that’s part of the reason that he has a 53.5% shooting % from the floor in his NBA career. Look for Jones to get the minutes that went to Rasho Nesterovic last season.