Thaddeus Young: Life After David West for the Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers needed life at the power forward position after David West left, and Thaddeus Young is exactly that.
Before David West went ring chasing in San Antonio and Golden State, he was the heart and soul of the Indiana Pacers.
West’s departure was debilitating, and his leadership, along with his four-year averages of 13.9 points per game and 6.9 rebounds per game were sorely missed. This was evident in the season of 2015-16 for the Indiana Pacers, who struggled to establish an identity at the power forward spot.
The Pacers began that season by experimenting with small ball, which found Paul George at the four spot and it failed miserably. The rest of the season followed suit as nobody established themselves as David West’s successor.
Frank Vogel called upon the likes of C.J. Miles, Lavoy Allen, Jordan Hill and Myles Turner to play minutes at the power forward position. Although Turner was the most productive of the options, the Pacers envisioned him as the future at center.
The power forward spot was a season-long experiment. Thus, the Indiana Pacers entered the summer of 2016 in search to fill the void left by David West’s exodus.
Enter Thaddeus Young
Over the summer of 2016, the Indiana Pacers acquired Thaddeus Young from the Brooklyn Nets for the 20th pick in the NBA Draft and future second round selection. The questions at power forward appeared to have a long-awaited answer.
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Thaddeus Young’s play up to this point has confirmed that he is the answer.
The Pacers are getting the most out of Young as he is averaging 11.8 points per game and 6.2 rebounds per game. He is also leading the team in field goal percentage at 53.3%, which speaks to his acceptance of his role.
Throughout his 10 NBA seasons, Young has suited up for some lackluster teams as he has played for the Philadelphia 76ers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Brooklyn Nets. He began his career in Philadelphia where he spent 7 years. Surprisingly, he made the playoffs 4 times in Philadelphia, but the teams were never true contenders as they only advanced past the first round one time.
His next stop in Minnesota lasted only one year, in which the Timberwolves endured a dismal 16-66 record. Young was then traded to a tanking Brooklyn Nets team in a trade to get Kevin Garnett back to Minnesota. He was forced to withstand two more losing seasons in Brooklyn before arriving at a potential contender in Indiana this past summer.
In his three stops in Philadelphia, Minnesota and Brooklyn, Young was a top offensive option on each team. In Indiana, that is often not the case every night. With Paul George, Myles Turner and Jeff Teague handling the bulk of the scoring load, Thaddeus is not always a featured aspect of the Indiana Pacers offense.
Accepting His Role
Aside from his rookie season, Young is averaging a career low in field goal attempts per game at 9.5. This is also the first season other than his rookie year where Young’s field goal attempts per game are below double digits.
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Despite the decrease in shot attempts, Young knows and accepts his role. His minutes have not fluctuated a great deal, as he consistently plays around 30 minutes a night. He simply has different jobs on different nights. When the team needs him to score, rebound or defend, he does it, and does it well.
This was evident Wednesday night against the Sacramento Kings as Thaddeus scored 8 points and pulled down 4 rebounds. These numbers are all below his averages, but his impact was felt tremendously as he often found himself defending DeMarcus Cousins, who was bottled up in the second half by both Young and Myles Turner.
The defensive efforts on Cousins fueled the Pacers on their way to a comeback from a 22-point deficit.
He has his bigger moments too. This week he threw down a monstrous dunk earlier in the week and has a game-winner under his belt this season as well.
Whatever his role may be, he accepts it and performs at a high and efficient level. The Indiana Pacers acquisition of Thaddeus Young was essential in the post-David West era, and I believe his play is far from its ceiling.
Next: Indiana Pacers Mid-Season Grades: Kinda Good, Kinda Bad
The Thaddeus Young Era has begun in Indiana, and he is instrumental in the immediate and future success of the Indiana Pacers as they begin their quest of ascension in the Eastern Conference.