The Indiana Pacers hold the 13th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. Which prospects should they avoid?
In order to turn things around, the Indiana Pacers need to hit on their 2021 draft pick after a history of failed selections. Without any draft picks higher than 10th overall in the past few decades, Indiana has had to find success elsewhere. This time around, the Pacers sit in a sneaky good spot with the 13th pick.
The 2021 NBA Draft class is loaded with talent especially at positions the Pacers need the most. They will have their chance at guards and wings at the end of the lottery that can come in and make an impact as long as they are given a chance.
Regardless of what happens in free agency with T.J. McConnell and Doug McDermott, the Pacers will lack depth in the backcourt and on the wing next season. The biggest issue for them right now is the absence of perimeter defenders. Addressing that in the draft has to be a priority.
With so many good prospects available this year, Indiana cannot afford to miss on yet another important draft selection as they have in recent years. In order to do that, they have to eliminate players from their draft board that do not bring enough to the table right away.
Here are a few prospects that the Indiana Pacers should avoid in the upcoming NBA Draft.
The Indiana Pacers should not draft Corey Kispert
I am a big fan of Corey Kispert and what he brings to the offensive end of the floor. He is one of the draft’s best shooters and will have a defined role in the NBA as a bench unit scorer. However, his entire draft profile is one that makes me worry about his fit with the Pacers.
Indiana already has plenty of scorers on the roster that will demand touches next season. T.J. Warren returning to the lineup just adds one more high-impact scorer to a unit that set a franchise record for points per game a season ago. Targeting another scoring threat with so many other glaring holes to fill would be a mistake.
Sure, Kispert can be a very good role player at the next level and will probably have some big nights in the box score but Indiana simply does not need him. There will be other lottery players available at 13th overall that warrant a selection from Indiana. And while Kispert is a good wing option at that spot, there are others who provide more of what Indiana is currently lacking.
The Pacers need to focus on defense and playmaking in this draft but shooting cannot be overstated. It is, quite literally, the key to winning in the NBA. At the same time, drafting a player who is primarily an off-ball shooter when you already have Warren, Caris LeVert, Malcolm Brogdon, and potentially Doug McDermott on the roster is unwarranted.
Players like Moses Moody or James Bouknight make more sense for the current roster. Indiana needs players with a high floor but also a high ceiling, which is obviously hard to find this late in the lottery.
Isaiah Jackson should not be on the Indiana Pacers’ radar
To put it in simple terms, the Pacers should not draft a center in the first round. The hiring of Rick Carlisle as head coach signifies that the two-big lineup will be coming to an end in the near future and with three centers already on board, adding another with a high pick would be a travesty.
This has literally nothing to do with Isaiah Jackson as a player other than his role and positional value to this team. Jackson is viewed as a lottery player with defensive upside and good athleticism, which is exactly what the Pacers currently have in Myles Turner and Goga Bitadze. Using another first-round selection on a backup center would halt any progress the Pacers are making.
Even if the Pacers trade one of the aforementioned centers this summer, they still have depth in the frontcourt to avoid taking another in favor of a more pressing need. Goga should be the guy off the bench with Turner or Sabonis playing the majority of the minutes in the starting rotation and perhaps JaKarr Sampson can return as the safety net.
While centers are valuable for what they do on the defensive end, they are much harder to build around than guards and wings. Having four first-round centers on a roster that severely lacks impact players elsewhere is not going to win the Pacers many games.
Isaiah Jackson is the top center in Indiana’s range of the draft so he gets the bulk of the disapproval here but let it be known that any center would be a poor choice for Indiana.
The Indiana Pacers cannot risk Jared Butler’s health
Baylor guard Jared Butler will not be cleared to play until he is approved by the Fitness-to-Play panel after a heart condition was detected. While he may be cleared relatively soon as this was just a precautionary measure by the NBA, the Indiana Pacers cannot afford to miss on a draft pick due to medicals when those same medicals were made very clear prior to the draft.
I do like Butler as a player but the risk is not worth it right now. He averaged over 16 points per game in each of his final two seasons at Baylor while shooting 41.6 percent from three-point range in his final season. Scoring is his calling card as he can create for himself and others. His role in Indiana would be very similar to Aaron Holiday‘s but Butler is a much better defender.
His struggles with turnovers and lack of elite athleticism, combined with his age, will knock him down a bit in the lottery and likely even out of the lottery completely. Now with his medical condition forcing him to miss out on some summer workouts, Butler has an uphill battle.
The Pacers can look at other combo guards that do not come with the risk, including Butler’s teammate Davion Mitchell. Tre Mann, James Bouknight, and Josh Giddey are also viable options in the lottery if the Pacers decide to go after a guard.