2 Duds, 1 stud from Indiana Pacers brutal loss to Boston Celtics
By Jack Simone
Stud - TJ McConnell
It was tough to pick out a stud in this game, as there was nobody who played particularly well for the Indiana Pacers. The game was pretty rough all-around, as the Boston Celtics were dominant on both ends of the court.
Aaron Nesmith’s intensity stood out as a positive, but even he ended up being one of the two duds in this game because of how big of a game Jayson Tatum had, combined with his poor shooting performance.
So, instead of going with one of the regular players, we have to go all the way down the rotation to TJ McConnell to find our lone stud of the night from the loss to Boston.
McConnell only played 12:12 in this game, but in his minutes, he was effective. And more importantly, he made sure that his impact on the game was felt at all times.
The veteran guard made multiple hustle plays that kept the Pacers in the game when they could have been getting blown out by 20 or more points.
He ended the night with six points, one rebound, five assists, and three steals while shooting a perfect 3-of-3 from the field. It was a small-usage, high-impact game for McConnell.