With Bennedict Mathurin no longer on the team, the Indiana Pacers need to figure out who's going to be their go-to iso scorer now.
Only time will tell, but most fans would say that Indiana was right to trade Mathurin, but mostly because the team was able to get a legitimate upgrade at center in Ivica Zubac.
Zubac should be a tremendous addition for the Pacers. He is a fantastic interior defender who can score the ball efficiently and rebound at a high level. Zubac finished sixth in Defensive Player of the Year voting last season, and he is currently averaging 14.4 points, 11 rebounds, and 2.2 assists while shooting 61.3% from the field this season.
He hasn't made his Pacers debut yet, but fans are excited about what the 28-year-old will bring to the table. However, this deal is still a risky one for them. Not only did they trade this year's first-round pick (even though it is heavily protected), but they moved on from their most skilled iso scorer, who can get hot in a minute.
Mathurin wasn't an ideal fit in Indiana because of his ball-stopping habits, but that's also what made him such a unique player on the roster. He can generate his own offense and create his own shot at a high level. He can score at all three levels. And when he's hot, he's borderline unstoppable.
But with the Arizona alum no longer around, the Pacers need to figure out who is going to replace him. And it's going to be a lot harder than they may think.
The Pacers will struggle with replacing Bennedict Mathurin
It's not going to be impossible, but it will be incredibly challenging for Indiana to find someone to replicate Mathurin's game.
Perhaps the closest on the roster right now is Andrew Nembhard. He is not as prolific of a scorer as Mathurin is, but he is an incredibly shifty guard who also does his best work with the ball in his hands in a slower tempo. The Gonzaga alum is another player who can create his own shot and put the ball on the floor, but he is not a one-for-one replacement.
Nembhard is averaging 17.3 points per game this season while shooting 43.8% from the field and 35.9% from deep. He can certainly put the ball in the basket, but his highs aren't nearly as high as Mathurin's. Plus, with Tyrese Haliburton on the shelf for the whole season, the Pacers need him too much as a playmaker.
Additionally, Pascal Siakam is already being tasked with too much. Asking him to also take on additional iso scoring opportunities is overkill.
Aaron Nesmith is not good enough off the dribble to replace Mathurin. Jarace Walker is improving, but he's still not nearly as good a scorer as his former teammate. Johnny Furphy is out for the rest of the season after tearing his ACL. Ben Sheppard simply isn't good enough to replace Mathurin, and there isn't really anybody else on the team who can replicate his value.
The closest might be Quenton Jackson, who has shown a ton of promise this year, because of his athleticism and microwave ability. But even that might be pushing it.
Indiana also just might need to wait another season to replace the 23-year-old, particularly through the draft. There is a chance the team can secure someone like Darryn Peterson or AJ Dybantsa, and they would both be incredibly additions.
Trading Mathurin will most likely work in the Pacers' favor moving forward as they finally have their center of the future. But by addressing one problem, they have created another. And they need to figure out how to fix it sooner rather than later.