The backup center position has been a revolving door for the Indiana Pacers after losing James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson each to Achilles injuries early in the season.
The Pacers throughout the season have added Thomas Bryant while giving auditions to Moses Brown, Jahlil Okafor, and Tony Bradley, and Bradley was rewarded for his efforts.
The Pacers inked Bradley to a contract for the rest of the season after he wrapped up consecutive 10-day contracts with the organization.
The former North Carolina Tar Heel-turned first-round pick has played seven games for the Pacers this season, averaging 3.0 points and 1.9 rebounds per game in just 5.0 minutes per contest. Bradley has converted 10 of his 12 field goal attempts for the Pacers.
"He does the simple things very, very well. He knows where to be on the court. He plays to his strengths," Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said of Bradley. "And a great thing for us is he rebounds, his rebounding – he's very productive."
Indiana is Bradley's fifth NBA stop, not counting his original draft destination of the Los Angeles Lakers before being traded on draft day for Josh Hart and his now-Pacers teammate Bryant.
Bradley spent three seasons with the Utah Jazz, where he played just 65 total minutes in his first two NBA seasons before a 58-game third year. Bradley would get traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, where he played 20 games, starting in eight before a three-team trade sent him to the Oklahoma City Thunder, where he finished out his season averaging a career-high 18 minutes per game in 22 games.
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Bradley then signed a multi-year contract with the Chicago Bulls, with whom he played 67 games before finding himself out of the NBA last season.
Last season in the G-League, Bradley averaged 15.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game in just 22.4 minutes per contest during the regular season for the Texas Legends.
Bradley made his Pacers debut on March 2 against the Bulls, playing just 62 seconds and not recording a stat. Bradley played over 20 minutes off the bench in the March 17 overtime win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he had 12 points, nine rebounds, two assists, one steal and two blocks, going against the four-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert.
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This story was originally published March 24, 2025 at 9:38 AM.