From being called a paper clip throw in to becoming an essential glue guy, Aaron Nesmith’s development is a big reason the Pacers rebuild has been a success.
When the Indiana Pacers acquired Aaron Nesmith in a trade with the Boston Celtics, the prize was widely thought to be a first-round pick for a team entering the first full year of a rebuild. Nesmith, a 2020 lottery pick, hadn’t been able to find consistent playing time in his first two seasons and made just 27% of his threes in sporadic minutes the previous year. The Pacers were taking a flyer on a young player, hoping that his talent would blossom with more opportunity but probably not betting on him becoming a fixture in the starting lineup for a team that’s now won three playoff series (so far) in the last two years.
Every year that Nesmith has been with the Pacers, he’s gotten better, he’s added something to his game. While his defensive effort and hustle has always gotten him on the floor with Indiana, offensively he’s gone from a standstill shooter that wasn’t able to attack closeouts consistently in both directions with a limited arsenal inside the 3-point line if he didn’t get all the way to the rim to someone the Pacers count on to make plays driving the ball with either hand, finishing in traffic, and he’s added floaters and mid-range pull-ups.
“He’s taken his offensive game to a complete different level,” Myles Turner said after the Pacers finished their series against the Bucks. “There’s times in the past where he puts the ball on the floor and we’re just kind of like uhh (cringes). Now it’s like we encourage him to do it. He gets downhill, makes good decisions, and he’s been very solid for us.”
Nesmith’s not the most talkative guy with media, his standard line in each of the last two media days about what he’s looked to improve in the summer is “to become a more complete basketball player” and he’s done just that. The numbers prove it. His field-goal percentages have improved from three different levels in his three seasons with the Indiana Pacers.
- From behind the arc: 36.6% to 41.9% to 43.1%
- At the rim: 63.9% to 69.9% to 71.4%
- Floater range from 3-to-10 feet: 26.3% to 43.4% to 53.8%
In Game 5 with the Pacers looking to closeout their rival Bucks but struggling to look like they had played basketball before in the first quarter, Nesmith was a huge part of the 20-point comeback as he showed off all the major areas of growth in his game as he put up 19 points and 12 rebounds with tough finishes inside, impressive triples off movement, floaters, and a pull-up mid-range bucket. Multiple of these makes came off ATOs designed for him specifically.
The Pacers wouldn’t have made that impossible comeback in the last 40 seconds in Game 5 without crucial buckets in overtime including a 3-pointer out of Spain pick and roll type action and a tip-in layup in transition that kept the Pacers in it late. In the five games of the first round, Nesmith averaged 14.8 points, a team-high 6.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists with shooting splits of 53.8/51.9/100.
“It’s just experience,” Nesmith said after Game 4. “Being in these positions before playing in these big moments. Just being more comfortable. … My teammates are putting me in a good spot to be great. Taking what the defense gives me, not forcing, not overstepping, just playing good quality basketball.”
On the entire season, Nesmith has become elite in his efficiency, the perfect complimentary piece for the Pacers starting lineup, as he would have joined the 50/40/90 number if he played enough games. He finished with splits of 50.7/43.1/91.3. Per Cleaning the Glass, he is in the 97th percentile among wings in points per 100 shot attempts at 131.6 (up from 112.8 in his first year with the team) in a modest usage role of 15.4%. He makes quick, decisive decisions, rarely turns the ball over, hits shots when the opportunity arises, and then plays harder than anybody else on the floor—illustrated perfectly by his unbelievable hustle block on Bobby Portis in Game 4 that was a crucial 5-point swing that halted any brief chance Milwaukee had of snatching away the momentum.
“That’s who Double-A is,” Tyrese Haliburton said. “What he brings doesn’t always show up on the scoresheet. Some people say, like, they’re willing to die for this. Double-A is willing to die for this. He gives it his all every night and I think every team in the NBA wants a guy like Aaron Nesmith. Every team who wins big and ultimately wins it all always has a guy like Aaron Nesmith.”
That’s the part of the game that no one has ever doubted about what Nesmith could provide to a group. He leaves it all on the floor. It’s why he’s forced his way into the starting lineup in every season with Indiana, despite talented lottery picks being made prior to both of his first two seasons with the Pacers. Nesmith’s always earned his role and his time on the floor through grit and effort. Him landing on his back in the playoffs is standard protocol for him.
“He sacrificed himself, man,” said Turner, who would later joke that Nesmith is made of vibranium. “Landing on your back like that is not fun, but it sparked a big play for us. That’s just not new for him. It’s very on par for what Aaron Nesmith brings to our team. Just a hard-nosed guy. I think he does an amazing job of just selling out. He’ll go out there and just put his body, his life on the line for the team.”
He makes the Pacers a better team when he’s on the floor. His 8.5 net rating led all Pacers rotation players in the regular season. Per Cleaning the Glass, he ranks in the 94th percentile in efficiency differential when comparing the team’s performance when he’s on the floor versus when he’s not. It’s a +10.1 value that they equate to the Pacers being 22 wins better with Nesmith playing than on the bench. Along with Andrew Nembhard, Nesmith is a huge part of why the Pacers defense has so vastly improved over the last two seasons. And he’s doing all of this on an absolute bargain of a contract as he’s in the first year of a 3-year, $33 million extension signed during training camp in 2023.
“He’s a warrior-type player,” Carlisle said of Nesmith after Game 5. “And, you know, interestingly, the former Ron Artest was here tonight … he was one of the toughest guys I ever saw in this league, ever. Aaron displays a lot of those attributes as well.”
The Pacers next challenge will be as tough as any they’ve had in the last two playoff runs as they face the number-one seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, who destroyed the Miami Heat in a sweep even without one of their best players for parts of the series in Darius Garland.
In the quest for a championship, Nesmith’s teammates and his coaches all see how much he’s willing to put everything on the line for the team. They’ll need it all again in round two but would he really die for this?
“It’s pretty accurate,” Nesmith said when asked about Haliburton saying he would. “This game is my life. I work so hard just to be able to do what I can do on a daily basis. I really would. I would go out there and give my life for this game. I want to win a championship. I think everybody in this room wants to win a championship. You have to sacrifice a lot to be able to do that.”
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iPacers - Indiana Pacers News 
[…] His teammates and Nesmith agree that he’d die for this game but it wasn’t his death he was causing tonight. Starting simple with wide open threes as the Knicks relaxed thinking they had the game wrapped up. The deep shots consistently grew in difficulty after each successive make. He made his final 3 triples in a span of 29 seconds of the final minute of regulation that cut the Knicks lead from 9 to 2. […]
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