Thaddeus Young is glue that holds the Indiana Pacers together

Thaddeus Young has earned the right to be labeled as reliable throughout his first 10 years in the NBA. Now, he’s the Indiana Pacers’ new Mr. Reliable.

I originally gave the moniker Mr. Reliable to David West, who was/still is a baaaad man. The Indiana Pacers have had some reliable options since West left the team, but none enough to take over the nickname.

Thaddeus Young has done enough to change my mind. On November 6th, it will have only been 16 months since Thad became a Pacer. Earning this title, without playing multiple years with the Pacers, says a lot about how solid Thaddeus Young is.

Here are some reasons why Thad is the new Mr. Reliable for Indiana.

Consistency

Consistency is probably the most important aspect to Thaddeus Young earning the nickname from me.

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For Thaddeus Young, he was cited as Indiana’s most consistent player on last year’s squad. He will consistently give you the 10-14 points and 5-7 rebounds per game.

In fact, before injuring his wrist in February of last season, Young was exactly within those numbers in the months of October through January. The injury threw him off target, but he got his mojo back in April and in the playoffs.

So far this season, Thad’s trademarked consistency has continued. He’s scored in double-figures in 8 of the first 10 games and has grabbed at least 5 rebounds in 7 of the first 10.

Left-Hand Finishing

Thad should get a patent for his little left-handed floater he uses in every game. Having that shot in a big man’s bag of tricks is always helpful. It’s a tough shot, but Thad makes it look easy and makes it more often than not. You might remember, he used that shot in a game-winner last season against the Washington Wizards.

Even in the video game NBA 2K, commentator Greg Anthony talks about Thad’s left-handed finishing around the rim:

"“He really is able to score over bigger players with just an array of little hooks and floaters,” Anthony says when you play as Thaddeus in NBA 2K. “I think it’s more finesse than anything.”"

It’s pretty neat that Greg Anthony took notice of Thad’s unique, yet effective, left-handed shot and implied it into the video game.

Need a basket? Throw it to Thad down low and let him go to work.

Defense

I’ve mentioned his offense, but now let’s get into Thad’s defense. He is the perfect build for a modern-day NBA power forward. He has experience playing the small forward position, so he’s valuable in the sense that he can guard guys like LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, etc. That being said, he can guard multiple positions, which makes him a reliable option on defense. While Myles Turner protects the paint, Thad takes care of business on the perimeter.

Another thing that makes Thad reliable is his age and experience. On this young Pacers team, Thad is one of the old men of the group. He is the fourth-oldest player on the roster, behind Damien Wilkins, Al Jefferson and Darren Collison. It seems like he’s been in the league forever. He knows what he’s doing, obviously. David West was the grandfather on some of those Pacers teams years ago.

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To cap this off, let me give you the definition of reliable: “Consistently good in quality or performance; able to be trusted.” Does that definition sum up Thad in a nutshell? Yes. That’s why he’s still going strong as a starter in the NBA, through two different eras of basketball. He’s doing pretty well for himself in the three-point shooting era of the NBA.