NBA India Games 2019: Indiana Pacers lucky to have Malcolm Brogdon, feels Director of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard (Exclusive)

To say that the Indiana Pacers had a busy offseason would be a bit of an understatement. While they did manage to keep the core of Victor Oladipo, Domantas Sabonis, and Myles Turner, they lost out on a lot of experienced campaigners in Bojan Bogdanovic, Darren Collison, and Thaddeus Young.

The Pacers had a lot of roster spots to fill and they acquired some decent pieces in the form of T.J. McConnell, T.J. Warren, and Jeremy Lamb. However, their biggest summer acquisition was, without a doubt, Malcolm Brogdon, whom they signed from the Milwaukee Bucks in a sign-and-trade.

Indiana Pacers will be traveling to India next week in order to play two preseason games, the first-ever in the subcontinent, against the Sacramento Kings on October 4th and 5th. Recently, I was able to talk to Pacers Director of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard on a conference call for the NBA India Games 2019.

Besides the first-ever NBA games in India, Malcolm Brogdon would also be playing his first game for the Pacers. We mentioned the same to Kevin and asked his opinion on the signing and what fans should be expecting of Brogdon.

Given that the Indiana Pacers signed Brogdon to a 4-year $85 million contract, it's imperative that the franchise was seriously interested in the 2017 Rookie of the Year. Kevin Pritchard was quick to admit the same:

"In the history of the Indiana Pacers, we've had some good offseason acquisitions. Leading into the offseason, Malcolm [Brogdon] was our highest priority guy and we feel very fortunate to have him. He was on a team that was super successful last year."

Back in October last year, Brogdon joined hands with four other NBA players to launch the Hoops2O initiative which seeks to raise funds for providing clean water to communities in East Africa. Pritchard was quick to address his efforts.

"If you ever get a chance to meet Malcolm, you'll know that as good a basketball player he is on the court, he's a better human being, and some of the things he's doing with his charity work and giving back to the community is truly impressive."

Returning to his exploits on the field, Brogdon, while plying his trade for the Milwaukee Bucks last season, became the 8th member of NBA's 50-40-90 club and Pritchard was well aware of the fact.

"On the court, he did something that very few players have ever done and that is what's called a 50-40-90. He shot 50% from the field, he shot 40% from 3-point and he shot 90% from the free throw line and not many players have ever done that. I think Larry [Bird] and Reggie [Miller] have done it but I think there's been seven or eight players in total do that."

Finally, Kevin Pritchard delved into what plans the Pacers organization had for Brogdon as he concluded:

"We know we've got a heck of a basketball player. We're gonna ask a lot out of him, especially early on in the season with Victor [Oladipo] being out, but we see him as a pillar of our organization. As we've got to know him over the summer, he's exceeded all our expectations."

Given his vast repertoire of skills, the fact that he's only 26 years old, and is about to enter his prime, we can surely expect great things of Malcolm Brogdon in a Pacers shirt. Fans in India are surely in for a treat at the NBA India Games 2019. In the meantime, you can check out some of his highlights from last season.

Fans in India can tune in to Sony TEN 1 and Sony TEN 3 at 6:30 PM on 4th and 5th October to catch the NBA India Games 2019 live!