Avoiding any uncertainty, the Indiana Pacers reached an agreement on a new contract with David West on Tuesday -- roughly 36 hours after free agency began.

West will receive a three-year, $36 million deal that includes a player option in the third year. The contract will carry the forward through his age-35 season. Retaining West was Indiana’s top offseason priority and they wasted no time getting an agreement in place.

While West was one of the top free agents on the open market, there was very little chance he was going to leave the Pacers. There is a mutual admiration between the two sides that made re-signing almost inevitable. Larry Bird and David Morway rolled the dice on West prior to the lockout-shortened 2011-12 season, signing him to a two-year, $20 million deal just eight months after surgery on his left ACL.

West liked what he saw in the Pacers after the New Orleans Hornets were unable to work a sign-and-trade with the Boston Celtics during the compressed 2011 offseason. Bird and Morway expressed confidence in West’s ability to return to near-All-Star play and West foresaw Indiana’s rise in the Eastern Conference. I’ve written this at least one before, but West is the biggest free-agent signing in franchise history.

The Pacers haven’t asked West to carry as much of an offensive load as he did at times in New Orleans, but his effectiveness has been on par with the prime of his career.

He averaged 18.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per 36 minutes this past season, slightly better than his career numbers (18 points and 8.1 boards) over that projection. West finished with the second-highest PER (20.1) of his career and his rebounding percentages remain level.

There was a lot of talk about the additional responsibility that Paul George and Lance Stephenson took on with Danny Granger out, but West absorbed a significant amount of possessions as well. You could also point to improved confidence in his knee, but West’s usage rate jumped from 20.9 percent (11-12) to 24.4 percent (12-13). He turned the ball over more, but his advanced shooting percentages were actually better than they were in his first year with the Pacers when he attempted three fewer shots per game.

West will be 33 when the season kicks off, which is one reason why the length of this deal was a sticking point for the Pacers. The player option for the 2015-16 season is interesting because of what he brings to the court/locker room and what the NBA landscape might look like in the summer of 2015. A lot can and will happen over the next two years and he has a history of forgoing guaranteed money in favor of free agency. West opted out of the final year of his deal with the Hornets in 2011, taking a huge risk following his aforementioned knee surgery.

Grade for West: A

He might have been able to find more money elsewhere, but re-signing with the Pacers was the best scenario. He receives a slight raise over the $10 million he earned in each of the last two seasons and remains in a stable situation that has proven to be successful.

Even with all of their young talent, the Pacers would have taken a big step back had they not retained West. While the agreement did seem inevitable all along, the front office wasn’t in the best position. Indiana didn’t have Bird Rights on West and they will have some salary cap hoops to jump through in the coming years.

Without qualifying offers to Ben Hansbrough and Jeff Pendergraph considered, the Pacers have about $50 million committed to nine players (they rescinded Tyler Hansbrough’s $4.25 QO hours after the West deal was reported). West’s deal will push that figure to around $62 million. The Pacers reached an agreement with C.J. Watson on Monday and they’ll also have first-round pick Solomon Hill under contract. Chris Copeland has been linked to the club as they look to bolster their bench.

The contracts they issued to Gerald Green and to a lesser extent, Ian Mahinmi, last year have become cumbersome.

Next up for the Pacers is signing Paul George to an extension before the October deadline. At this point, there is plenty of time for the two sides to work out a new deal and the current and future cap situation could change as the summer progresses. Luckily for the Pacers, Granger’s contract comes off the books after next season -- coinciding with when a George extension would kick in.

Grade for Pacers: B+