Young, versatile, athletic…available? The first three adjectives the Indiana Pacers know are true of Texas Tech freshman Zhaire Smith. Come draft night on June 21, Indiana can only hope the last is true as well when its time to pick comes at 23rd overall.
Coming off a year full of overachievement, Indiana’s near-future looks a lot more competitive than it did 11 months ago. Victor Oladipo runs the show, and young big men Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis raise Indiana’s ceiling long-term.
Even skilled, stretchy big men like Turner and Sabonis are becoming less impactful in the postseason, however.