Indiana Pacers: Which players have been the best shooters this season?

After the Indiana Pacers traded away what was their best three-point shooter in Justin Holiday, there were some shoes to fill. What Pacers players now lead the team in this department after the trades took place?

The Indiana Pacers traded for Tyrese Haliburton and three-point specialist Buddy Hield for Holiday. Now that Holiday is gone, here are the players in shooting roles for Indiana with a minimum of 1 attempt per game.

Tyrese Haliburton has been lights out shooting in his first two games with the Indiana Pacers. Before joining the team he shot 41.3% from behind the arc on just over 4 attempts per game. This was in a sample of 51 games that he started with the Sacramento Kings.

Since joining the Pacers, he has been in another tier of shooting and playmaking in his expanded role. He is shooting 55.6% from behind the arc on 9.0 attempts thus far which is extremely good for starting with a brand new team.

Haliburton hasn’t been with Indiana for the entire season but is certainly someone I have to mention.

As it stands right now, he would be the leader in shooting percentage for the Pacers, but I wanted to highlight another player who has shot well after being traded to the Pacers.

Second-year forward Jalen Smith was a career 23.2% three-point shooter coming into Indiana but that has not been an accurate statistic since being traded. Although it has been just two games, the number is quite good.

He is shooting 42.9% from behind the arc on over three attempts per game and 64.7% from the field. He is technically the team’s second-best three-point shooter, but Duarte’s higher attempts per game give him the nod instead. An honorable mention nonetheless.

Chris Duarte

There is no secret around Indiana that the Pacers made a great selection in this year’s draft, selecting Duarte with the 13th pick. He’s had an incredible rookie season that allowed the Pacers front office the ability to shift their roster to build around these pieces.

After trading away Caris LeVert, Duarte has been given the green light to be himself and that isn’t always high-scoring games. His mindset as a rookie and ability to read the floor has been a big factor in his early success.

Chris Duarte has started in 38 of his 50 games played, averaging 28.7 minutes per game. This season as it stands now, he would be the team’s second-best three-point shooter. He is behind Haliburton, who is quite hard to catch up to.

Duarte is averaging 13.4 points per game while shooting 36.4% from three on 4.8 attempts. He is the team’s best pull-up shooter which has been fun to watch when he can get out in transition.

His mid-range game has been great to see as well, his skill set and ability to hit tough fadeaway shots adds to his style of play. He shoots 43.5% from the field.

Duane Washington Jr.

Although he can be a somewhat streaky shot, when he has it going he is tough to guard. The undrafted rookie has been fun to watch, starting his season with the Mad Ants and making his way to a consistent rotational player with the Pacers.

Washington Jr. is averaging just over 9 points per game, but this season he has scored 15 or more points 8 times in the 26 games he has played. In that time, he is shooting 34.5% from three and 38.0% from the field.

He also set a single-game franchise rookie record of seven three-pointers made against the New Orleans Pelicans. This would make him the team’s third-best three-point shooter, behind Haliburton and Duarte.

Oshae Brissett

Oshae has been a fan favorite ever since he was discovered in the Pacers last season where they missed the playoffs under Nate Bjorkgren.

The 23 year old signed with the Pacers on a 2 year / $2,459,046 contract, including $2,459,046 guaranteed, and an annual average salary of $1,229,523. The Pacers will have the option to sign him again next season if they chose to.

Nonetheless, Oshae has been awesome. He is shooting 34.4% from three on just over two attempts per game while shooting 41.0% from the field. This would make him the fourth-best shooter on the team.

Brissett has been a great rotation player for the Indiana Pacers since joining the team and was even a starter at the end of last season – a great find and a keeper for Indiana. He averages 7.0 points per game in 19.9 minutes.

Buddy Hield does not make the list at this point, but it has only been two games, so there is plenty of time for improvement.