It seemed like a baffling pick just one month ago, but Taelon Peter may have already proven himself to be the perfect player for Rick Carlisle's system with the Indiana Pacers.
Heading into last month's draft, the Liberty alum was essentially on nobody's radar, yet the Pacers drafted him with the 54th pick. This was a questionable move for multiple reasons. Not only was Peter widely projected to go undrafted, but Indiana selected him over Gonzaga guard Ryan Nembhard, who many fans wanted on the team.
It is still too early to definitely say the Pacers made out like geniuses by drafting Peter, but the results look good early on.
Peter looked very solid in summer league and earned a two-way contract with the team, which effectively ended Enrique Freeman's tenure with the team after one season. While he didn't look like the best player on the court, Peter showed a ton of promise in summer league and proved he could be a potential fit in Indiana due to his intensity, effort, and overall playstyle.
Recently, Jack Simone of Hardwood Houdini spoke about how impressed he was with the Pacers' second-rounder and highlighted everything that could make him an eventual contributor for the team (h/t The Kevin O'Connor Show).
"Speaking of the Pacers, Taelon Peter, 54, he can hoop. He looked really good for that Pacers team. His jumpshot is so quick. He gets that off in like .5 seconds. It looked incredible. It was going in," Simone said. "It was the putting the ball on the floor a little bit, it was the cutting off the ball...he's recognizing the gaps in the defense and getting himself easy buckets at the rim. And then just the intensity with which he played on the defensive end."
It is unlikely that Peter will play a big role in Indiana during his rookie season. However, he remains a name to keep an eye on as the Pacers look to navigate through life without Tyrese Haliburton for one season.
Taelon Peter will likely spend most of his rookie season in the G League
Regardless of how impressive he looked in summer league, Peter is still a second-round rookie on a two-way contract. Furthermore, even with Haliburton on the shelf for a year, it is going to be difficult for the 23-year-old to carve out a consistent role right away.
While he will likely split time between the Pacers' NBA and G League teams, it is fair to assume he will spend most of his rookie season with the Noblesville Boom. Given that he still has a lot of his game to work on, this is the best-case scenario for Peter as he will have a good opportunity to hone his craft and develop into a well-rounded player.
Like Simone mentioned, Peter made his presence felt on both sides of the ball largely due to his effort. Furthermore, despite being an absolute sharpshooter in college, Peter shot just 26.7% from beyond the arc in four summer league games. However, there is reason to believe his shot will eventually translate with more reps, and the fact that he showed promise in just about every other aspect of his game should be enough to give fans reasons to believe he might become a long-term asset for the Pacers.