Indiana Pacers: Duane Washington Jr. has been impressive, showcasing his shooting abilities

Indiana Pacers. Duane Washington Jr. - Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Indiana Pacers. Duane Washington Jr. - Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

The Indiana Pacers signed Duane Washington Jr. to a two-way contract at the start of their season. Washington went undrafted in the 2021 NBA draft from Ohio State.

After spending some time with the fort Wayne mad ants, Washington has seen the court for the Indiana Pacers more and more as of late.

With Injuries piling high and the Indiana Pacers’ record spiraling downwards, Washington’s on-court success has been a fun sight to see.

Duane Washington Jr. has appeared in 20 of the Pacers’ 52 games this season but has really become a consistent role player since the new year. He has started in six games as well.

Since Jan. 01, 2022, Washington is averaging 11.3 points per game & 2.3 assists while shooting 40% from behind the arc, and 40.5% from the field.

However, in his last five games, he has been shooting lights out from deep, showing extreme confidence with his shot.

His three-point shooting is at 45.7% in those five games and a FG% of 48.3 goes to show what confidence he is playing with. His scoring average is 15.0 PPG.

If you haven’t been able to watch Washington as of late, this is the type of confidence he is playing with. This shot creation is so, so tough to do and he creates a ton of separation with this move to get an open look.

Before he shoots the ball, he head fakes to buy himself just that much more time on the shot, and of course, he drains it. This was one of his four makes in the Pacers’ win against the LA Clippers on Monday.

Like fellow rookie Chris Duarte, Washington Jr. has shown promise in his pull-up shooting as well.

"“The contributions of Duane Washington were tremendous tonight, so great to see, so heartwarming”. Rick Carlisle had to say after Monday’s win”, Carlisle said."

After hitting four three-point shots in the fourth quarter, Washington had this to say on his mindset, “I felt that I missed some open (shots) early and went into halftime and cleared my head. My teammates found me and I was able to knock some shots down”.

Shooting has been a major issue with this Pacers roster and Washington is the team’s second-best three-point shooter right now. Justin Holiday leads the team with 37.5%.

His streaky shooting has bode well for him in recent games, the Indiana Pacers only have two players shooting above 35% from three and that is Washington and Holiday.

"Rick Carlise spoke on the young guy’s confidence, “These other young guys are surrounded by these supportive veteran players and that’s a big deal. Our coaching staff has continued to be positive with these guys even when they weren’t playing a whole lot”.You have to keep yourself ready when the opportunity knocks and all these guys have done that”."

The Indiana Pacers may see more of Washington tonight as they face the 11-41 Orlando Magic. Domantas Sabonis and Goga Bitadze remain out for different reasons, so that means more Isaiah Jackson minutes as well.

Washington has been a fun young talent to watch and his three-point shooting has been a blessing for this Pacers team.