Indiana Pacers: Grading the team’s 2021 NBA Draft picks

Will trading for Isaiah Jackson swing the fences for the Indiana Pacers?

Another surprising move for the Indiana Pacers was foraying into the first-round once more after picking in the lottery. Doing so, they poached big man Isaiah Jackson who was selected 22nd overall by the Los Angeles Lakers as a part of a bigger deal which included Aaron Holiday and their 31st selection, the latter of which was also obtained from a trade with Milwaukee which cost them their 54th and 60th picks, as well as two future second-rounders.

The relatively lofty string of assets that were dangled for Jackson screams utmost necessity on Indiana’s part. However, it’s hard to fathom for a frontcourt-rich team to tab a rookie big man as an actual need, even if a subsequent move is on the horizon as expected by most, and now, by many more.

If the Pacers’ frontcourt doesn’t undergo a substantial change this offseason, it will be fair to consider this maneuver as a reach. Jackson is talented in his own right and has fine upside, but Indiana is far from an ideal fit for him and vice versa with the way things are in the present. Certainly, a big man rotation consisting of All-Star Domantas Sabonis, defensive menace Myles Turner and the developing Goga Bitadze doesn’t exactly come across as lacking, at least on the surface.

To be frank, this feels like a depth move, a Turbonis breakup notwithstanding. After all, Rick Carlisle’s penchant for a deep big man rotation composed of players with varying skillsets for strategic purposes is one of his key roster-building motifs. Acquiring Jackson is not bad per se, but the narrative becomes gloomier when considering what the Pacers did to obtain him when he doesn’t fill a position of need.

Grade: C-