Next season is going to be a make-or-break one for Bennedict Mathurin's career with the Indiana Pacers. With his future with the team still up in the air, next season will solidify what is next in store for him in Indiana.
The Pacers are watching their spending as they are seemingly still aiming to avoid paying the luxury tax, which is a threshold they have not crossed in two decades. Mathurin is eligible for a rookie-scale contract extension, and he is expected to start. Because of this, he will have a lot to play for and a lot of questions to answer.
Does Rick Carlisle trust Mathurin? Do the Pacers view the Canadian native as a long-term contributor or a trade chip? Fans are about to find out.
Bennedict Mathurin needs to show out next season
Ahead of what many are calling a "gap year," Mathurin is expected to get the biggest role of his career up to this point with the Pacers.
Tyrese Haliburton will miss all of next season, and the Pacers have a big center problem now that Myles Turner is a member of the Milwaukee Bucks. The team will look completely different next season, and they now have an opportunity to experiment a bit and see who or what sticks out as they look to re-establish themselves as title contenders. There are a lot of players to keep an eye on, but perhaps none of them stick out as much as Mathurin does.
Throughout his career so far, Mathurin has made it clear that he provides a lot of value. He is a gifted scorer who has stepped up numerous times when Indiana needed him. This was especially evident last season. However, there are concerns about his long-term fit with the Pacers, and that is exactly why the team has not committed to him for the long haul just yet.
The Arizona alum provides a unique skillset to the Pacers, particularly due to his iso-scoring ability. However, his biggest problems is that he slows Indiana's offense down, which is far from ideal considered that the team relies heavily on fast-paced ball movement and improvisation. Additionally, Mathurin does not provide a lot of value outside of his scoring, which only gives the Pacers even more reason to move on from him.
Regardless of what ends up happening, it is safe to say that the Pacers are playing it the best way they can at the moment. Instead of committing to or against Mathurin one way or another, the team is giving him an opportunity to prove his worth with a bigger role.
There is a lot to like about Mathurin, but the concerns about his fit in Indiana are valid. Regardless, any questions fans may have about him will be answered next season as the Pacers look to prove that they are still a force to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference, even if it does not look like it at the moment.