NBA Draft Spotlight: The perfect defensive forward for the Indiana Pacers

The Indiana Pacers will have a high draft pick this year, although we have yet to find out which one it will be. We will find out exactly which pick they will have during the NBA draft lottery in the coming weeks. However, they are most likely at this time to be around the seventh spot in the lottery. Meaning we can begin to project out and highlight different players that the Pacers may decide to pick.

In today’s edition, we highlight one of the most likely players to fall at the seventh pick: Jarace Walker. 

If you haven’t seen Jarace Walker live or watched any of Houston’s games this year, here are a few highlights to get you acquainted.

He’s a great passer:

An amazing defender:

And is a solid offensive player as well:

I think you would be hard pressed to find a player in this year’s draft to has a more NBA ready frame and a versatile skillset coming into the league. It is likely that Walker could be a day one starter with the team, especially given that the Pacers don’t truly have a power forward on the roster.

Walker averaged the following in his one and only season with Houston: 11.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, and 1.8 assists on 35% FG3 and 47% FG. Those are amazing numbers as a first-year player, and show a versatile skillset across the board.

After the consensus top three in the draft, Walker is likely the best player that the Pacers could hope for still on the board at seven.

The Pacers don’t struggle for offense, but we do need more defensive presence and size at the power forward spot. Walker would bring both of those things and more. And while he didn’t have an impressive showing in March, his body of work throughout the season show that he is an elite prospect that the Pacers would be over-the-moon to bring in this offseason.