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2017-18 Pacers Player Reviews: T.J. Leaf

By Tony East

TARRYTOWN, NY - AUGUST 11: T.J. Leaf #22 of the Indiana Pacers poses for a photo during the 2017 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot at MSG training center on August 11, 2017 in Tarrytown, 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. (Photo by Brian Babineau/Getty Images)
TARRYTOWN, NY - AUGUST 11: T.J. Leaf #22 of the Indiana Pacers poses for a photo during the 2017 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot at MSG training center on August 11, 2017 in Tarrytown, 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. (Photo by Brian Babineau/Getty Images) /
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TJ Leaf Indiana Pacers
TARRYTOWN, NY – AUGUST 11: T.J. Leaf #22 of the Indiana Pacers poses for a photo during the 2017 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot at MSG training center on August 11, 2017, in Tarrytown, New York. (Photo by Brian Babineau/Getty Images) /

TJ Leaf’s rookie season caused somewhat of a dichotomy amongst Pacers fans and faithful. Let us look back upon his inaugural season.

“With the 18th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, the Indiana Pacers select… TJ Leaf from the University of California, Los Angeles.”

Once Adam Silver dropped that quote, Pacers fans rushed online to do their research. Who is this Leaf guy? What is he good at? Can he be good someday? What is his ceiling?

One season into his NBA career, we find ourselves asking most of the same questions about TJ Leaf. He played under 500 minutes in total this past year and took only 136 shot attempts. He was axed from the rotation halfway through the season. In the teams first 41 games, Leaf touched the floor in 32 of them. Over the second half of the year, the rookie played in just 21 games.

He got his first big boy playoff minutes with 3:41 of action down the stretch of the Pacers blowout win in Game 6, but he didn’t put up any looks and didn’t actually contribute a single counting stat.

In short, he didn’t really do a lot over the course of the year. But he didn’t get a ton of opportunities to play, either. Let’s look back on Leaf’s inaugural season and see if we can get closer to the answers to the questions surrounding Leaf.

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