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8p9s Mailbag: Fitting in Glenn Robinson III and making Turner and Sabonis work

By Jacob Lane

BROOKLYN, NY - FEBRUARY 14: Glenn Robinson III #40 of the Indiana Pacers arrives to the arena prior to the game against the Brooklyn Nets on February 14, 2018 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Matteo Marchi/NBAE via Getty Images)
BROOKLYN, NY - FEBRUARY 14: Glenn Robinson III #40 of the Indiana Pacers arrives to the arena prior to the game against the Brooklyn Nets on February 14, 2018 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Matteo Marchi/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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TJ Leaf Indiana Pacers
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – NOVEMBER 17: T.J. Leaf #22 of the Indiana Pacers is seen before the game against the Detroit Pistons at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on November 17, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement.(Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

How’s T.J. Leaf progressing?

Due to the depth of the Pacers frontcourt, there hasn’t been a whole lot of playing time available for the 19th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft T.J. Leaf. However, in limited minutes Leaf has shown that he has the potential to be a very good NBA player for years to come.

Leaf has averaged a little over 9 minutes per game in his rookie season and has appeared in 42 of the 58 games played. And although a handful of those appearances have come in garbage time, there have been plenty of games where Leaf has been featured in the rotation.

Especially in the month of January. In the Pacers 15 games in January, Leaf played 10 minutes or more six times and averaged 3.6 points, and 1.5 rebounds over the entire month.

Though Leaf only scored 5 points or more twice, we did see a near-perfect performance against the Chicago Bulls, where he went 6 of 6 from the field (3 of 3 from deep) and finished with 15 points and 6 rebounds. We also saw him do this.

After we got to see some good stretches of play in January, Leaf has not played in February (6 games) due to injury, and I do not believe he will get much run down the stretch of the season. As I mentioned before, the depth of the Pacers front court and the imminent return of GRIII means that Leaf will likely spend more time in the G-League, which is a great thing for both parties.

With the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, Leaf gets the opportunity to be the go-to guy, something that he certainly won’t get to be with the Pacers. In 3 games this season in Fort Wayne, Leaf averaged 23.3 points and 8 rebounds per game, while shooting 56% from the field and 50% from deep.

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