It's time for your yearly preseason dose of Jarace Walker propaganda. The tantalizing power forward is entering his third NBA season, but with just 108 games played under his belt — barely over a season's worth of games — making any declaration on what he's capable of would be silly.
And in year three, with Myles Turner gone and Tyrese Haliburton out for the year, head coach Rick Carlisle will have plenty of opportunity to experiment with lineups and individuals. Walker could be the biggest beneficiary of that experimentation.
Lots has happened in the two years since Walker was drafted (most of it good, but some of it harrowing) so it's easy to forget that he was the No. 8 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. He went that high because, in theory, he is a two-way wrecking ball, unstoppable force in transition, rim-protecting tweener forward who shot the ball pretty well in college and looked (physically) like the kind of player who helps teams win championships. A young Aaron Gordon comes to mind.
And maybe Walker can still be that guy! Of all the young guys on Indiana's roster — Mathurin, Sheppard, Furphy, Dennis, etc. — I think Walker has the highest ceiling, even heading into his third season.
Jarace Walker will get his first real chance this year
The center rotation in Indiana is currently Jay Huff and Tony Bradley. Now, I love the Huff pickup and I think Bradley was admirable in his role in the postseason, plus I don't think Walker is really a center unless Carlisle wants to go ultra small ball. Point is, there are plenty of minutes up for grabs in the frontcourt, and a lot of those minutes are probably Walker's to lose.
Will he be a 30-minute per night guy or average a double-double? Not yet. Growth comes slowly in the NBA, which you wouldn't know by how quickly teams give up on players. But if Walker can stay in the rotation, have more games where he looks comfortable than games where he looks lost, block some shots, and bring energy to the Pacers frontcourt, then that's a positive development. He should be the perfect four in Indiana's system.
Walker is 22 years old. He's younger than some rookies in the 2025 class. He's barely played one NBA season. If you think of this as Walker's second season (which it practically is, playing time-wise) then suddenly the excitement of what he's capable of comes back.