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

The Good

Leaf showed some flashes of being a good player. The problem is that they came in spurts of individual plays are rarely in a sequence or run of play. Regardless, he did some important things well.

Let’s start with the obvious one: Leaf was a sensational three-point shooter. He hit 42.9 percent of his deep looks, the second highest percentage by a rookie who took 25 or more attempts. He is better than most guys his age at the long ball.

Which is all fine and dandy. It’s promising. But take it with a grain of salt. Every single one of Leaf’s made threes was assisted. All of them. Most of his makes are the product of someone else doing the work and creating the shot for him, and him finishing the play. But that is the good part, Leaf showed that he is already a capable play finisher, especially when that finish is worth three points:

That clip demonstrates something else Leaf is solid at executing: slipping screens. He knows the right time to put on the jets and burst into space, and he gets quite a few open looks because of it.

Leaf also did a great job taking care of the ball. He never really got it, but when he did, he made sure to keep it in the hands of the Indiana Pacers. He had a turnover rate of just 6.5 percent and only gave it up 10 times the entire season.

Leaf does make some positive plays, which bodes well for his future. The things he does well happen to be skills that are emphasized in the modern game (screening, shooting, and taking care of the ball) and that is encouraging.

But there are some bad parts of Leaf, too.