Bennedict Mathurin is better than LeBron, and more SL overreactions

The Indiana Pacers took the floor for the first time in months on Friday. They start their summer league season off with a victory against the Charlotte Hornets 96-84. Overreacting to summer league games is fun, so this is my stab at it.

This is the best summer league team the Pacers have ever rolled out. Bennedict Mathurin is better than LeBron James, is a future All-Star, and this group is going to win the championship. Okay but seriously, I am enjoying being able to watch the Pacers again.

This was complete domination from the young Indiana Pacers. Will they take home the championship?

There was excitement surrounding these Indiana Pacers Friday night. The bench never sat down, and multiple players on their summer league roster have already played in actual NBA minutes. Chemistry is something this group has been working on this offseason, and it was on full display in their opening game.

Bennedict Mathurin led the Pacers in scoring with 23 points and 4 rebounds. He also shot 9/16 from the field and made three of his six three-point attempts. Mathurin did so in just 20 minutes of action.

He made his first shot from three, and you could tell he was just trying to score. A few times, a play broke up, or he had to work in isolation which I thought he did well at. There was one shot that felt like he made his mind up that he was going to shoot without looking for a better option. It is the first summer league game.

Chris Duarte was solid on both ends of the court, showcasing his prior experience at last year’s summer league and the 2021-22 NBA season. He scored 16 points and four assists while making three of his seven shot attempts. Isaiah Jackson was also impressive, scoring nearly a double-double while getting four blocked shots. He finished with nine points and 12 rebounds. He might be one of the bounciest Pacers I have ever seen – his second jump is wild.

Dune Washington Jr. and Terry Taylor played well in their minutes as well. You could tell that their experience was an advantage as they led the game by more than 20 points. Duane Washington posted 10 points and six assists while shooting 3/12 from the field. Washington was able to connect on a transition three but did struggle to shoot the ball. I did enjoy seeing him distribute the ball more, which helped the Pacers to take such a substantial lead.

Terry Taylor continues to impress in the rebounding department, as his first points of the game came from grabbing an offensive rebound for an easy two. He finished the night with 11 points and seven rebounds – making 5 of his 11 shot attempts.

Taylor’s game is efficient and I am excited to see how he continues to grow offensively, as he did connect on a three-point shot. With Domas Sabonis off the team, Taylor is the new double-double machine.

There will be some growing pains, as with any group of rookies, but this was a great start to the season. Andrew Nembhard showed off his range and poise while scoring 5 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds. Kendall Brown struggled from the field, making 4 of his 11 shots but ended with nine points and a handful of dunks. Brown is fun to watch and has plenty of time to grow.

The next time we see the Indiana Pacers will be this Sunday, July 10th vs the Kings at 3:00 PM EST on ESPN. The Kings are the next group to stand in the way of the Pacers’ quest to become summer league champions.