Kendall Brown is 100% healthy and staying with the Pacers on a two-way contract
Second-year forward Kendall Brown is back for Year 2, as expected. "You forget how it feels to be healthy sometimes."
Kendall Brown is back with the Indiana Pacers for another season.
The 2022 second-round pick (No. 48) signed a two-way contract on Tuesday, the third and final one available for the Pacers this season. This signing comes 10 days after the team played their final game in the Las Vegas Summer League.
And so now, on July 25th, all 15 roster spots plus the three two-way deals are all filled.
Brown, a 6-foot-8 forward out of Baylor, was diagnosed with a right tibia stress reaction a few months into the season so he took some time off. “I just thought it was a muscle thing,” he revealed six months ago. “And then we took an MRI and that’s when it showed the stress reaction. That’s when they told me to take a break and chill.”
However, after his return, it evolved into a stress fracture and both Brown and team officials agreed that surgery to take care of it should be done. It was performed by Dr. Renn Crichlow at OrthoIndy in January.
“It was extremely disappointing,” he said of the surgery. “Especially at a young age, you don’t really want to go through an injury like that. As a rookie, especially. Everything is in God’s hands so I was counting my blessings still.
“The biggest challenge was not being able to play and finish out the season. With opportunities in this league, you want as many as possible so missing out on those hurt.”
From January: Brown discusses his return to the court after sitting out with a stress reaction
Brown is just 20 years old. Still young, raw and bursting with potential. But most of all, he’s in need of true game reps. So being a full participant in mini-camp practice and then playing at summer league, his first games in over four months, is what the offseason was all about for him.
Brown, by the way, has been a regular at the team facility. That means something.
He was cleared by doctors in early June and says he feels 100% healthy again.
“It feels amazing to be on the court, especially with my teammates, and to be able to feel what it’s like to be healthy,” he told Fieldhouse Files in Las Vegas. “Just having fun out there. Just getting used to the pace again and the play and getting back into motion.”