Pacers need to retain veteran power forward if they hope to be kings of the East.
Despite coming so close and yet so far to cracking the NBA’s Eastern Conference and making the finals, the Indiana Pacers still have all the tools to one or two steps further next year.
But perhaps the most important of the pieces to that puzzle is veteran power forward David West, who was one of the shining lights for the youthful Pacers in the playoffs.
West helped give direction to the young side as the delved deeper than many of them has been in the playoffs and nearly knocked off the champions the Miami Heat, taking them to seven games.
Throughout their playoff run West set the tone for the rest of the side to follow, including playing while sick against Miami in Game 6.
West played in all 19 games of the Pacer post-season and averaged 15.9 points and 7.6 rebounds from his 36 minutes a game.
But salary cap pressure loom on the horizon as younger players will inevitably seek to upgrade their current deals to match their new-found level of skill and authority within the team.
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