3 young players Pacers should develop, 2 to give up on
By Ben Grunert
The Pacers can give up on Jordan Nwora
Jordan Nwora ended up with Indiana at last season’s trade deadline as Milwaukee bid him farewell after almost three seasons. The former second-round pick channeled his long-range marksmanship with a 42.2% outside clip as a Pacer.
Despite Nwora’s clear ability to shoot the rock, he made as little of a true impact as anyone on the Pacers. Out of Indy’s 25 most used five-man lineups, Nwora played in four of them. All four of those lineups owned horrendous net ratings: -17.3, -46.2, -18.4, and -44.6.
Simply put, primary lineups including Nwora had an average net rating of -31.6. Unfortunately, the 24-year-old’s skills haven’t seemed to translate to winning basketball of any kind. Whether Indiana’s lack of success with him stems from Rick Carlisle’s lineup choices or not, the Pacers shouldn’t have much motivation to hang onto Nwora.
A slightly younger Aaron Nesmith defends at a higher level than Nwora while providing more winning intangibles. In stark contrast to Nwora, Nesmith has earned consistent run alongside Haliburton. One lineup including Nesmith and Haliburton even held an astonishing +38.3 net rating.
Nwora’s shooting stroke could provide a boost for many teams, but the Pacers don’t seem to be one of them. Indiana’s statistical slumps with Nwora on the court are far too daunting to ignore, and his -152 plus-minus through 24 games doesn’t help his case either.