The 2023 NBA Draft takes place on Thursday, June 22, as both rounds are wrapped up in one night. As it approaches, TGH will be taking a quick look some teams’ draft strategies, and shedding some light on what direction they will go with their picks.. Here is the Indiana Pacers NBA Draft profile for 2023.
Indiana finished the 2022-2023 season with a 35-47 record. That was good enough for fourth in their division and 11th in the Eastern Conference. Bright spots included Buddy Hield breaking Reggie Miller’s Pacers record for most three-point field goals made in a season and Bennedick Mathurin making the most three-pointers by a Pacers rookie.
The Pacers have five picks in the 2023 NBA Draft.
First Round (three picks):
Second Round (two picks):
Pick #7: Taylor Hendricks, F, UCF
If the Pacers are looking for a college-tested three-and-D wing player, look no further than Taylor Hendricks, the 6-foot-9 forward out of UCF.
Hendricks may pop up in more than a few of these mock drafts for teams in the fifth to 11th or 12th slots in this draft because he’s exactly the kind of piece that a lot of clubs could slot in right away. He averaged 15.1 points on almost 40 percent shooting from deep during his only year in college. He’s also a willing and effective defender.
Pick #26: Noah Clowney, PF/C, Alabama
Looking back at previous profiles in this series, it becomes clear that this is not a very center-heavy NBA Draft. Regardless, Indiana will clean up their need for a wing player with their first pick, allowing them to take more of a project here.
Clowney is going to get pushed around by other centers in the league for a year or two as he learns the game and adds weight to his frame. But, when he does get a big stronger, the Pacers could have a great two way combo forward/center option here. He rebounds, scores inside and plays good on-ball defense. Just give him the minutes and he could be a guy to lock down the middle of the bench unit with some time and care.
Pick #29: Jamie Jaquez, Jr., SF/PF, UCLA
This pick more than the other two listed above could be traded away for some veteran play at the position of the Pacers’ choosing. But, they also have two second rounders that could be sent away so this profile will roll with the assumption that they’ll trade those instead.
So why not split the difference between their first two picks and take a combo forward?
His three-point shooting is suspect and he’s not very quick, but there’s a lot to like here for a late first rounder. Jaquez is another willing defender, which is important, and he also grabs those hustle rebounds that veterans may let slide. He can also hit a mid-range shot with consistency.
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