3 young players Pacers should develop, 2 to give up on

The Indiana Pacers boast one of the brightest young cores in the NBA, led by one of basketball’s most cerebral point guards in Tyrese Haliburton. The 2022-23 Pacers showed serious promise as a top-10 team in scoring and passing. Indy’s roster has an average age of only 24.6 years, which sets the franchise up for an exciting future.

Coming off of his first season as an All-Star, Haliburton inked a five-year, $260 million max contract to stay with the Pacers. Indiana’s long-term success will mostly depend on whether the organization can surround Haliburton with the proper pieces as the floor general continues his ascension. Several young Pacers could develop into key cogs alongside Haliburton, and many of them already displayed elite chemistry with their franchise point guard last season.

For the most part, Indiana’s youth movement is oozing with potential. While the Pacers’ player development staff has plenty of enticing talent to mold, there are still a few youngsters who they should probably cut loose.

The Pacers should continue to develop Bennedict Mathurin

Kicking off this list is the most obvious choice on the Pacers roster. Bennedict Mathurin made headlines throughout a fantastic rookie season, much to the delight of Pacers fans.

Last summer’s No. 6 pick finished second in scoring among rookies, only behind Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero. Despite his somewhat inconsistent playing time, Mathurin scored double-digit points in 64 of his 78 appearances — only four less than Banchero’s 68. The Montreal native also shot better than Banchero from the field, 3-point line, and free throw line.

Last season, Mathurin rightfully became the first Pacer since Rik Smits to make the All-Rookie First Team. The rising star poured in 16.7 points per game with 28.5 minutes a night. However, he averaged 20.4 points in 35 games with 30-plus minutes.

Mathurin has a serious knack for drawing contact, thanks to his physical playstyle and impressive athleticism. In fact, he shot freebies at the charity stripe 5.8 times per contest. Per 36 minutes, Mathurin ranked No. 11 in the league in free throw attempts per game.

Most important of all, Mathurin has outstanding chemistry with Haliburton. The two guards play off of each other at an elite level, hence why Indiana’s two most dominant lineups from last season included the Haliburton-Mathurin duo.

The Pacers can give up on Jalen Smith

Jalen Smith put together a disappointing campaign based on preseason expectations. After notching 13.4 points per game the prior season in 22 outings as a Pacer, Smith mustered just 9.4 points per contest while shooting only 28.3% from downtown.

Many projected Smith as a full-time starter before last season, expecting him to slot in as Myles Turner’s primary frontcourt mate. Instead, the 23-year-old stretch four only started in 31 of his 68 appearances. Smith saw less and less action as the season progressed, starting in just five of his last 40 contests. During that stretch, Smith averaged a modest 16.5 minutes per game.

All in all, Indiana’s logjam of frontcourt talent has limited Smith more than anything. Aside from Turner and his status as top dog in the center rotation, second-year big man Isaiah Jackson turned heads with his sublime shot-blocking prowess and some serious bounce to go along with it. Jackson’s 3.2 blocks per 36 minutes provide an interior presence that Smith simply doesn’t.

Smith has also struggled to thrive next to Haliburton the way many other young Pacers have. In four primary Indiana lineups that included both Haliburton and Smith, none of them posted a positive net rating.

While Smith could end up taking another leap down the road, his ceiling is likely limited on this Pacers squad. Already equipped with two bigs who mesh much better with Haliburton, Indiana would be wise to move on from the former Sun.

Given Smith’s limited opportunity for growth on the current roster, Indy should try to shop the young forward for other complimentary pieces that could fill some greater positional needs.

The Pacers should continue to develop Andrew Nembhard

At 23 years old, Andrew Nembhard is one of the league’s best-kept secrets. The Canadian playmaker already makes a case for the best backup point guard in the NBA, and he would have the best vision on most rosters in the league. If not for Haliburton’s presence, he would almost certainly run the show as Indy’s distributor.

In 24 games without Haliburton, Nembhard put up per-game averages of 13.8 points and seven assists. He also recorded a career-high 31 points in a road win over Golden State to go along with 13 assists. After also setting a career-high 15 assists toward the tail end of the season, Nembhard truly solidified his status as a dime-dropper.

Nembhard first put the NBA world on notice last November when he splashed a buzzer-beating three in the face of Lebron James to take down the Lakers in Los Angeles.

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The 6-foot-3 guard also serves as one of Indiana’s best perimeter defenders. Nembhard provides consistent effort and toughness when guarding opponents, often taking on high-quality players or even All-Stars as his defensive assignments.

When Indiana’s young core has fully developed, it would make sense to find Nembhard contending for Sixth Man of the Year on an annual basis. As long as he is playing for the Pacers, Nembhard will thrive as one of the best bench players in the league — with the skill set to start if needed.

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.

The Pacers should continue to develop Jarace Walker

When the Pacers selected Jarace Walker with the No. 8 pick in this year’s draft, they saw a two-way monster with a sky-high ceiling. Across four Summer League games, Walker did not disappoint.

At Vegas, Walker averaged 14.3 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 3.3 assists, per Real GM stats. The 19-year-old may have shined the most on the defensive end as he showcased his impressive rim deterrence and athleticism. The tantalizing teenager also tallied 1.3 steals per game and 1.3 blocks per game. Pacers fans should feel ecstatic about Walker’s potential fit in a frontcourt with Myles Turner.

Walker is still a raw talent, but his defensive potential seems limitless. At 6-foot-8 and 235 pounds, the Houston product’s build alone should cause opponents problems for years to come. Walker’s fascinating combination of length and mobility could pave the way for a long and fruitful career, and that career will only benefit from minutes alongside Haliburton.

From day one, the Pacers should throw Walker into the fire as a starter. The versatile forward looked ready to go at Summer League. A vote of confidence could be just what he needs to take a big leap out of the gate. Walker could be the real deal, and Indiana needs to treat him as such.

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