Indiana Pacers Fit the Puzzle Pieces Together on Draft Week

Thursday, June 23, 1:53 p.m. — Thaddeus Young > Rookie

The Pacers universe was tense.

A day after the shocking revelation that long sought after asset Jeff Teague was traded to the team, another Woj bomb was about to explode. After months of scouting, hosting draft workouts, and preparing to pick at the 20 spot for the draft being held that night, Bird decided to instead trade the pick and a future second-rounder for Nets forward Thaddeus Young.

In a somewhat weak draft, Bird took control of his own destiny with the move. Rather than wait and see how things fall ahead of the 20 spot, he traded it and got a guy he knows is capable of starting day 1. As the draft went on, the trade started looking better and better, as many of the names Pacers fans were excited about fell off the board before the 20 pick rolled around.

The message was clear: Thaddeus Young > Rookie.

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Regardless of whether that’s true or not (it will take 3 or 4 years to tell for sure), grabbing an established piece over one you have to build shows that Bird plans on making this rebuild short. Young brings immediate impact to this team, and just like his newly acquired teammate Teague fills the biggest hole in the backcourt, Young fills the biggest hole in the frontcourt.

What was that glaringly missing piece? A true power forward. Paul George and C.J. Miles ended up being bad experiments at the 4 position. Lavoy Allen is far from a bad player, but starting him at 4 was problematic for the Pacers, case in point the first few games of the Raptors series last year. Having Turner paired up at the 4 with Ian Mahinmi seemed to be the most effective frontcourt for the team, but it definitely felt clunky and was awful for floor spacing.

Enter Thaddeus Young.

Thaddeus Young | PointAfter

He’s not a superstar, no, but a guy who’s guaranteed to fight for boards and get buckets every time he’s on the court. He averaged roughly 15 points and 9 boards last year. The Pacers haven’t had a guy average 15 and 9 or better since Jermaine O’Neal. They haven’t had anyone grab that many boards since Troy Murphy.

Keep in mind, Thaddeus Young was able to put up his numbers despite the workload of his frontcourt partner (and best player on the team) Brook Lopez. Young still got his despite having a 7-footer next to him, a situation that should feel familiar to him as he moves on to his next frontcourt partner – almost 7-footer Myles Turner.

He’s not a superstar, no, but a guy who’s guaranteed to fight for boards and get buckets every time he’s on the court.

Another helpful addition he brings is help to the aforementioned pick and roll situation. Young ranked 18th in the league in points scored as the roll man on the play, and that’s with his buddy Lopez finishing 4th alongside him. Young comes from an offense very familiar with the pick and roll and using it effectively, something that the Pacers and perhaps more specifically Myles Turner need to improve in. Turner and his partner Mahinmi both failed to crack the top 30 in the category (36th and 33rd respectively).

A good screen is just what Paul George needs to be successful, and the more he gets the better. Last season, he finished 8th in the league in isolation points and 4th in points off a screen. Those are both great rankings; one of them was achieved much more smoothly. His isolation numbers in total are great, but they didn’t come easy. He scored a measly 0.81 points per possession and had a 34.4 FG%, 38.1% scoring frequency, and an 11.1% turnover frequency on isolations. Those were all the worst numbers out of anyone in the top 10 for the category.

Yes, Paul George averaged more turnovers off of isolations than James Harden. Let that sink in.

However, off of screens, George rocks a nice 1.01 points per possession and 40.6 FG%, which when considering most of the shots off of screens are 3-pointers, are pretty solid totals. They’re not the worst out of any player in the top 10 of the category, at least. The point is, the more George is given and the less he has to create, the better.

With Young and an emerging Turner at the helm, the hope is that pick and rolls can become more of a factor in the offense with Teague, and guys like George and C.J. Miles (who ranked 18th in points off screens and catch and shoots) can score a lot easier off of nice screens. That’s the kind of offensive efficiency a fast-paced team needs. Young will be a big help in making that dream become a reality.

He certainly isn’t a “stretch 4” by any regards, though. His 3-point numbers are some of the most confusing stats you’ll ever see. Here’s a rundown of his total 3-point attempts in each of his seasons since joining the league: 19, 164, 138, 22, 4, 8, 292, 115, 30. A graph of his career 3-point shot attempts would literally look like the McDonald’s logo.

He’s shot 31.9% from 3 throughout his career, though in his only volume year (2013-14, when he shot 292 3-point attempts) he shot 30.8%. Neither are particularly enticing numbers, but depending on how the Pacers want to use him, they could be enough to keep defenders honest and space the floor. Besides, Myles Turner should be able to space with his killer midrange and (hopefully) on the rise 3-point stroke.

Most of Young’s shots came within the paint last year, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s just worth noting that he’s coming off of a season where he was really good around the tin and not so good everywhere else.

What he’s bringing to the squad is stability and consistency on the scoring and rebounding end. He’s a mixed bag when it comes to floor spacing and shooting threes, but his addition to the team should provide a boost to the team’s offense overall. He’s the kind of player the Pacers have needed in the frontcourt for a long time.

That’s how his piece fits into the puzzle.

Next: The Draft Isn't Over