Will the Indiana Pacers be able to push themselves into a competitive spot in the NBA's Central Division and beyond?
Indiana landed the No. 7 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, taking spots ahead of the Washington Wizards, Utah Jazz and Dallas Mavericks. Indiana also holds the No. 26, No. 29, No. 32 and No. 55 selections, giving them plenty of opportunities to select solid prospects later in the draft or package the picks in a potential trade.
Indiana took guard Bennedict Mathurin with the No. 6 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Mathurin finished the season with 16.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game in 78 games and 17 starts. His high production during a 29-point outing against the Milwaukee Bucks in March earned him praise from Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle.
“(Bennedict) Mathurin is learning a lot about playing as a starter in high-level games and what that's all about,” said Carlisle. “I like his vibe, I like his approach, and I like that fact that he is a sponge for information right now.”
Indiana selected guards Andrew Nembhard in the second round of the 2022 draft. Nembhard, a reliable scorer and playmaker for Gonzaga and Florida during his college career, had a productive rookie season for the Pacers. He finished with averages of 9.5 points, 2.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists per contest in 75 games and 63 starts.
Will the Pacers be able to follow up their solid selections in 2022 with the No. 7 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft? And how will their potential prospects fit with this up-and-coming Indiana roster?
3. Cam Whitmore
The Pacers can turn to like Kansas forward Gradey Dick or Overtime Elite guard Ausar Thompson to provide an extra scoring punch with their No. 7 pick.
But Whitmore, a 6-foot-7-inch forward out of Odenton, Md., can add size and a solid rebounding ability to a team to a team in need of both.
Whitmore ended his lone season at Villanova with averages of 12.5 points and 5.3 rebounds during 26 games and 20 starts for the Wildcats during the team's 2022-23 season. He shot at a 47.8% rate from the field, good enough for second place on a Villanova roster that went 17-17 during the regular season and 10-10 against conference opponents.
The 232-pound forward scored 26 points during a matchup with the Xavier Musketeers in January, hitting 11 of his 18 shot attempts and three of his seven 3-point shots as Xavier took an 88-80 victory at Finneran Pavilion. Whitmore and Villanova guard Justin Moore led the Wildcats in scoring when Villanova earned an 80-48 win over Georgetown in the first round of the Big East Tournament.
“We all know what kinds of players Justin Moore and Cam Whitmore are,” Villanova head coach Kyle Neptune said, via Villanova.com. “We all know what they're capable of doing. I thought this was a great team effort. We came out and executed defensively.”
Whitmore can also provide extra scoring to a Pacers bench that already ranked second in the NBA in offensive rating with 61.3. Though he will need to work on his 3-point shooting to keep pace with Indiana's 36.7% from beyond the arc as a team, but he can be a serviceable player who can fit alongside guard Tyrese Haliburton and Mathurin should he slide down to the No. 7 spot.
2. Taylor Hendricks
The Pacers will need another reliable rebounding and shot-blocking option if they want to push for a spot in the playoffs.
Center Myles Turner ended the year with 7.5 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game, but the Pacers still finished with the 24th-highest rebounding rate in the league at 41.5 rebounds per game. Turner's 7.5 was enough to lead Indiana's roster, with forward Jalen Smith and guard Buddy Hield taking second and third place on the team with 5.8 and five rebounds per outing, respectively.
A former 4-star recruit from Calvary Christian Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Hendricks averaged 15.1 points, seven rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game in 34 games and started for the UCF Golden Knights. He maxed out at 12 rebounds two times, once in a game against Florida State and again against Oklahoma State. He swatted away four shots against Evansville in November and Houston in January.
Indiana already has two power forward options in Smith and forward Isaiah Jackson on Spotrac's 2023-24 contract grid for the Pacers. But Hendricks, should he have the impact on both sides of the floor that he had with UCF , would be a solid option to fit alongside the team's young core of players.
1. Jarace Walker
Should he slide down to the Pacers at No. 7, Walker may be able to address most of the Pacers' needs from the time he steps on the floor for Indiana.
A 6-foot-8-inch forward out of New Freedom, Pa., Walker earned the 2022-23 American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and a spot on the 2022-23 All-American Athletic Conference Second Team after a successful season with the Cougars, according to Houston's website. He averaged 11.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game in 36 games and 35 starts.
Walker's ability to crash the boards on offense could separate him from other potential prospects for the Pacers to watch out for in the lottery.
He averaged 2.3 offensive rebounds per game, grabbing as many as six offensive rebounds during a game against the Northern Colorado Bears in November. Walker swatted away six shots during a March matchup against the Auburn Tigers, adding on 10 rebounds as the Cougars earned an 81-64 win over Auburn in the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.
Walker's size and skillset could make him a reliable fit next to Turner and provide a boost on the boards to a squad that placed 16th in the league in offensive rebounds per game.
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