Why Jalen Smith isn’t likely to be on the Indiana Pacers next year

Jalen Smith’s small sample size may be the deciding factor that favors the Indiana Pacers

Smith having only 22 games of this level of production may be what allows him to stay with the Indiana Pacers, but there are plenty of examples that show teams aren’t always scared off. Betting on that small sample size is all about balancing whether the production was a fluke versus getting the player under contract before he has a larger sample size to negotiate with. There’s a lot of reason to take a $5-7million gamble on what we saw to close the year from a 23-year-old that’s played only 78 games through two years, and that would be enough to outbid the Pacers.

There’s a chance that Smith values what the Pacers did for him by playing him as much as they did, and maybe he wants to return to the team to continue showcasing what he can do. The only way that happens is if the lack of cap space and small sample size keeps Smith at the bottom of the free agent priority list across the league and the Pacers make room in the rotation for him. With Myles Turner, Isaiah Jackson, Goga Bitadze and Oshae Brissett, the frountcourt can be quite crowded without even knowing what might come of the Pacer’s draft night.

In a way, it’s nice that Smith has the chance to go where he wants to go after being tossed aside so early in his career. It may be frustrating for the Pacers to potentially be helpless in retaining a player they traded for, but there may still be a chance. It all comes down to what the 23-year-old values, and how the NBA values him.