3 things to know about Trevelin Queen, the newest Pacer

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Pacers are signing guard Trevelin Queen to a two-way contract, according to a report from The Athletic. The move comes halfway through the preseason and just over a week before the regular season begins. Here are three things to know about Queen and his fit in Indiana.

He's accomplished in the G League

Since signing with the Houston Rockets before the 2020 season as an undrafted free agent out of New Mexico State, Queen has played in 10 NBA games, all of them last season. The rest of his professional experience has come in the G League. Last season, he averaged 22 points, six rebounds and four assists per game for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers and was named G League MVP.

His success hasn't translated to opportunities at the next level. He has now twice signed training-camp deals and been waived in the preseason. He's averaging 4 points in seven minutes per game in his NBA career.

The Pacers have now used both their two-way contracts

NBA teams are allowed to carry two two-way contracts at a time on top of 15 players on the regular roster. Indiana has now filled both of its spots; the first signing was 2022 second-round pick Kendall Brown. He and Queen will be eligible to suit up for 50 games with the Pacers if their deals aren't converted into normal NBA contracts. Otherwise, they'll spend the remainder of the season with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

The Pacers opened training camp 18 players, including Brown. Queen's addition means they'll have to waive two before the season starts Oct. 19. Queen's path to consistent playing time is hard to envision within the Pacers current roster configuration. Buddy Hield and Chris Duarte will begin the season as Indiana's starting wings, and Brown, Aaron Nesmith and rookie Bennedict Mathurin are all candidates for minutes of the bench. The logjam will be partially alleviated if the Pacers trade Hield, a veteran whose contract expires in 2024.

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Indiana is the latest stop in a long journey

Queen attended four colleges before finishing at New Mexico State, where he spent his last two seasons. Before that, he briefly lived in a car while playing at College of Marin in California. He emerged as an NBA prospect at NMSU, leading the Aggies to an NCAA Tournament appearance as a junior. They lost by a point in the first round to Auburn, who went on to make the Final Four.

The Pacers are his fourth NBA franchise. While most of his career has been with Houston, he went to training camp with the Lakers in 2021 and did the same on a partially guaranteed contract with Philadelphia before he was cut earlier this week.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers sign guard Trevelin Queen to two-way contract