Indiana Pacers players that have played the best basketball of their NBA career, before the suspension of the league this season.
Although the state of the Indiana Pacers season is currently unknown, a handful of players have had career-best seasons prior to the NBA’s suspension.
All of these players have played a key role in this funky, injury-filled season. With only 65 games to assess, here’s a closer look at how they’ve played and why they are having their best seasons so far.
T.J. McConnell
T.J. McConnell has been outstanding this season off the bench. Before coming to Indiana, it wasn’t a sure thing that he would really get much playing time. He proved those doubts wrong. Such is the case of McConnell’s entire career.
His nonstop hustle and ability to find the open man is what makes him so good. Nate McMillan has also always chosen the more veteran player when making lineups, and when the team was (shortly) fully healthy, McMillan put more focus on McConnell meaning Aaron Holiday would take a backseat.
This season, per 36 minutes, McConnell is averaging 12.4 points and 9.6 assists, shooting 51 percent from the field. Those numbers speak for themselves for a second unit point guard. McConnell has definitely played his best basketball in Indiana and the Pacers will need his hustle and poise if they want to be successful in the future.
Aaron Holiday
In his second NBA season, Aaron Holiday has been given extended play time due to the injuries of many players, but more specifically with Victor Oladipo out until late January. In that time, Holiday has shown some outstanding growth.
While his playing time has nearly doubled, so have most of his stats. He is averaging 9.4 points per game and 3.3 assists per game this season while shooting 39 percent from three (6 percent increase from last season) and still shooting 40 percent from the field.
By far his biggest improvement this season has been learning how to play without always having to shoot the ball. Part of this could be the leadership that Malcolm Brogdon provides, but either way, the fact that he is making good reads offensively and getting the ball to others has been great.
He is showing flashes on his full potential and there is no question that he is confident in his ability to play. He will continue to grow and so will his role within the organization.