Last season no longer matters.
Sure, it's great that the Indiana Pacers made it to the Eastern Conference Finals as the sixth seed. The new season now brings on elevated expectations as a team and for many individuals in a yellow and blue uniform.
With just days before the preseason starts for the league, there a few players on the Pacers who need to turn out some good performances if they look to crack the roster.
1. Jarace Walker
Walker impressed the organization and NBA fans during the Summer League. In his four appearances for the Pacers, he produced an average of 18 points, 7.3 rebounds and nearly five assists a game.
Indiana traded for Walker from the Washington Wizards during the NBA Draft in 2023. He was a lottery pick that year but has yet to have the same impact in the league as Victor Wembanyama or Dereck Lively II.
While cracking the Top 25 in scoring this summer, Walker's range was on display. He connected on roughly 46% of his shots from behind the three-point arc.
That's close to 10% better than what the Pacers shot as a team last season despite having the league's best-scoring offense and being tied for the best overall field goal percentage.
He will fit nicely in the rotation, but he most likely would not beat out Pascal Siakam or Obi Toppin for minutes at the power forward position. Nor will he be spotted on the depth chart ahead of Aaron Nesmith and Bennedict Mathurin.
A bad preseason could bury him further down in the depth chart or send him to the G League for more minutes and development.