The Indiana Pacers lost their second straight preseason game last night. Tyrese Haliburton, Myles Turner, and Andrew Nembhard all sat out the game against the Houston Rockets as they lost 122-103.
The Pacers struggled to defend the young Rockets throughout while committing 31 fouls and struggled to make shots from deep once again (10 for 42 from 3).
Who knows how much you can really take away from two preseason games where the Pacers essentially have no point guards for half of the game? All due respect to Buddy Hield’s 9 assists and 2 turnovers from this game as the backup point guard but it wouldn’t be surprising if the Pacers start shooting at higher percentages when Haliburton starts playing and creating easier looks for his teammates.
The bright spots in this one: Aaron Nesmith, Jalen Smith, and Ben Sheppard. Plus, Dillon Brooks got ejected five minutes into his first game with the Rockets for doing the dumb stuff that Brooks does.
Nesmith made many impressive offensive plays off the bounce whether getting all the way to the rim or hitting mid-range fadeaways. He scored 18 points while making 7 of his 9 shot attempts. None of his makes came off the catch including a pull-up 3-pointer for his first shot of the game.
Jalen Smith was the last of the three backup centers to get in the game for the Pacers in this one but he was by far the best. He went 5 for 5 from field including a 3-pointer and scored 11 points to go with 6 rebounds in just 12 minutes in which the Pacers outscored the Rockets by 9 points. His most impressive play was a textbook verticality block.
“Jalen Smith is playing like a guy who knows what his strengths and weaknesses are and how he fits into our system,” said Rick Carlisle. “I was impressed with him.”
Smith called it a bounce back game for after he missed the game-tying free throws in final seconds of overtime in their first preseason game and he may have the lead in the race for the backup center minutes after last night.
Daniel Theis looked competent defensively and made a pair of nices block to start the game that led to an Obi Toppin dunk and a Bennedict Mathurin and-1 bucket. He finished with 2 points (0 for 3), 5 rebounds, 2 blocks, and a steal. He also had 3 fouls and 3 turnovers. Isaiah Jackson (-18) had 5 fouls in only 14 minutes in what has been a career-long problem for the athletic leaper. Without his foul trouble, Smith likely doesn’t play at all until the second half in this game.
The rookie Ben Sheppard had his second straight solid performance with 11 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists. Beyond his expected good shooting (3 for 7 from deep), Sheppard played well defensively as well as he got a stop or two on Jalen Green and had a really nice block where he didn’t give up on a play.
It’s still hard to see a path to playing time for his as a rookie with the current makeup of the roster but it’s a good sign that he already looks capable of filling rotation minutes as a wing. He seems to have already developed some chemistry with fellow rookie Jarace Walker as they have assisted each other on multiple 3-pointers. Walker specifically seems to look for Sheppard and find him when he’s open.
Walker struggled to make shots (2 for 10) compared to his first preseason game in his return to his college home of Houston. Both he and Sheppard did get their first minutes earlier in the game than in the first contest as part of the second unit.
Mathurin continued to look like he’s leveled up on offense in terms of his decision-making and moving the ball. He finished with 14 points and 5 rebounds. Bruce Brown is an awesome defender and makes a lot of impressive plays on that end of the floor. He’s 0 for 7 from deep in his first two exhibition games with the Pacers. TJ McConnell’s baseline fadeaway remains unstoppable and he finished with 11 points and 8 assists in 18 minutes.
Obi Toppin’s defense was concerningly bad and he lost matchups with just about everyone that he found himself guarding at various points. He did have this very impressive putback score and finished with 8 points and 6 rebounds.
Among the many nice performances for the Rockets prospects, Cam Whitmore, who the Pacers tried to trade up in the draft to get, scored 15 points and had some highlight dunks along the way.
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