Pacers Select Chris Duarte at #13

[Pacers Forever]

at this point only Sabonis is signed for 3 more seasons. everyone else is 1 or 2 years. as I see it there will be decisions to make next summer. some may get extensions, some may be traded as expiring contracts, and some may just be allowed to become free agents. It's certainly possible for Duarte to be the starter in year 3.

Oh yeah this team will be quite different next year if they’re wanting to build a Top 5 team in the East.

Carlisle will be like damn let’s get busy KP.

As the Pacers stand currently I see a 7th-8th seed club in the East as all teams in front of us have improved more than us. I think we can pass Boston, Washington, Charlotte, and possibly Chicago. I don’t believe any other teams below us will pass us up.

[Topofthekey]

The point is, if they want to take a player as the gold standard for shooters, it's someone like Steph Curry, not Duncan Robinson

Also,

McCollum - 3PA: 8.9, 3P%: 40.2%
Robinson - 3PA: 8.5, 3P%: 40.8%
Lavine - 3PA: 8.2, 3P%: 41.9%

His 3P stats are comparable to players like McCollum and Lavine

I mean, Robinson is a fantastic shooter, but I don't see why he should be singled out as a standard bearer of sorts

I feel it's mostly a byproduct of the residual hype surrounding him and other Heat players from their magical playoffs run

Ah well, the truth be told? I'd be happy as heck if we had any of them.

Me too, my friend

I'm not trying to disparage any of them. I just find it a bit strange, the reputation that some of them have. Mention Duncan Robinson, and people go "awesome shooter!", but mention Zach Lavine and people go "terrible defender!", even though objectively Lavine had a better 3P% on almost as many attempts

[Topofthekey]

Let’s say coming in he’s a Duncan Robinson level shooter and a plus defender. Reasonable expectation given where we took him and who we left on the board? If he is that I’m seeing a better player than Caris Levert. Could he / should he push Levert to an off the bench role?

Do take note that since the Heat's Cinderella run in '20, Duncan Robinson's 3P% has plummeted a lot this past season - he ranked #38 in the league in 3P% if I'm not mistaken, ranking behind guys like Paul George and Zach Lavine

I'm not ready to crown Duncan Robinson as an elite shooter just because he had one good season

It’s not about Duncan Robinson.

You're right, my apologies for derailing the discussion a bit

About your query, I'd say it depends on which Duncan Robinson are we talking about

If the '19 version, then absolutely, '19 Duncan Robinson with plus defense definitely has a shot at earning a place among the starters, depending on what the team wants, better shot creation or better shooting. If it's shot creation, then perhaps LeVert still has the edge

Otoh, '20 Duncan Robinson with plus defense is pretty good too, but more of a high tier role player. LeVert probably remains the starter, unless the team specifically wants a better shooter than him in the starting lineup, in which case maybe they go with Justin instead?

[Scoot McGroot]

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[8305]

Do take note that since the Heat's Cinderella run in '20, Duncan Robinson's 3P% has plummeted a lot this past season - he ranked #38 in the league in 3P% if I'm not mistaken, ranking behind guys like Paul George and Zach Lavine

I'm not ready to crown Duncan Robinson as an elite shooter just because he had one good season

It’s not about Duncan Robinson.

You're right, my apologies for derailing the discussion a bit

About your query, I'd say it depends on which Duncan Robinson are we talking about

If the '19 version, then absolutely, '19 Duncan Robinson with plus defense definitely has a shot at earning a place among the starters, depending on what the team wants, better shot creation or better shooting. If it's shot creation, then perhaps LeVert still has the edge

Otoh, '20 Duncan Robinson with plus defense is pretty good too, but more of a high tier role player. LeVert probably remains the starter, unless the team specifically wants a better shooter than him in the starting lineup, in which case maybe they go with Justin instead?

Think I heard someone say he's hitting 48% of his three's in the summer league?

To be honest I hadn't followed Robinson that close through 20-21. Just remember how he blasted us in the bubble. If Duarte is going to shoot like that how do you keep him out of the starting lineup?

As I see it he's:
A better shooter and defender than Levert.
Maybe a better shooter than Holiday, also better off the dribble than Holiday.
My fantasy is they just roll with Duarte as a starter and the player he projects to be could actually make us a better team right now.

[Topofthekey]

It’s not about Duncan Robinson.

You're right, my apologies for derailing the discussion a bit

About your query, I'd say it depends on which Duncan Robinson are we talking about

If the '19 version, then absolutely, '19 Duncan Robinson with plus defense definitely has a shot at earning a place among the starters, depending on what the team wants, better shot creation or better shooting. If it's shot creation, then perhaps LeVert still has the edge

Otoh, '20 Duncan Robinson with plus defense is pretty good too, but more of a high tier role player. LeVert probably remains the starter, unless the team specifically wants a better shooter than him in the starting lineup, in which case maybe they go with Justin instead?

Think I heard someone say he's hitting 48% of his three's in the summer league?

To be honest I hadn't followed Robinson that close through 20-21. Just remember how he blasted us in the bubble. If Duarte is going to shoot like that how do you keep him out of the starting lineup?

As I see it he's:
A better shooter and defender than Levert.
Maybe a better shooter than Holiday, also better off the dribble than Holiday.
My fantasy is they just roll with Duarte as a starter and the player he projects to be could actually make us a better team right now.

Frankly I wouldn't mind this at all

If KP can flip LeVert for a useful asset right now, I'd love to see him do it and just open up the starting spot for Duarte

More realistically though, the team will probably take a cautious approach and spend some time evaluating Duarte's play in the regular season, before making any decisions

But yes, I'm really hoping that at some point KP can flip LeVert and Duarte becomes the starting SG. He's in the right age group with Myles and Domas too

[Wizop]

If KP can flip LeVert for a useful asset right now.

Are you implying that LeVert is not a useful asset? Probably not, but Duarte needs to earn his spot.

Sent from my phone.

[boomershadow]

Pritchard has used the line "we had people calling about him right after the draft, so you know that's a good sign" a few times in his press conferences, but I actually am seeing a lot of coverage about teams wanting Duarte.

[8305]

Pritchard has used the line "we had people calling about him right after the draft, so you know that's a good sign" a few times in his press conferences, but I actually am seeing a lot of coverage about teams wanting Duarte.

I don’t read much into that “line”
They said the same thing when we took Miles Plumlee.

[Topofthekey]

If KP can flip LeVert for a useful asset right now.

Are you implying that LeVert is not a useful asset? Probably not, but Duarte needs to earn his spot.

Sent from my phone.

Agreed that Duarte needs to earn his spot, it's why I said somewhere that the team is probably going to take some time to evaluate his play in regular season before making any decisions

I'm cautiously optimistic though that Duarte can develop into a quality player and be the long term 2 for the team

Which means at some point I feel LeVert has to go, so hopefully by that time LeVert's trade value has increased enough that KP can flip him for something good

[boomershadow]

Pritchard has used the line "we had people calling about him right after the draft, so you know that's a good sign" a few times in his press conferences, but I actually am seeing a lot of coverage about teams wanting Duarte.

I don’t read much into that “line”
They said the same thing when we took Miles Plumlee.

I don't read much into the line by itself. It's just some filler bs to say to reporters. I doubt that many people were actually calling about TJ Leaf lol.

I do think it's cool I've seen Wartiors fan blogs saying "if only we had gotten Duarte"

[pacers33granger]

Pritchard has used the line "we had people calling about him right after the draft, so you know that's a good sign" a few times in his press conferences, but I actually am seeing a lot of coverage about teams wanting Duarte.

I don’t read much into that “line”
They said the same thing when we took Miles Plumlee.

I specifically recall the same about Solomon Hill when the talk was about how we reached for a guy who was slated to go in the 2nd round.

Sent from my SM-A716U using RealGM mobile app

[Wizop]

Which means at some point I feel LeVert has to go, so hopefully by that time LeVert's trade value has increased enough that KP can flip him for something good

LeVert, Brogdon, and Turner and all signed into 2023. There will be decisions to be made in two years. whether they'll be traded, accept lesser roles, or will have become all stars will be TBD.

[granger05]

Sam Vecenie (Edited to update this as I had said Hollinger and that's wrong) had an ARTICLE on the athletic looking at the rookies in summer league.

He had this to say on summer league in general:

When evaluating rookies at the event, I don’t think it’s worth overreacting to bad performances, which is why you won’t see me comment on any below. The adjustment to playing professional basketball can be real, and it takes time in many cases. It’s just not worth getting particularly up in arms about.

Having said that, I do think it can be informative on the positive side of the equation.

Here's the bit on our rookie:

Chris Duarte, Pacers
This one will be a bit quicker. One would expect Duarte to be terrific at his first summer league. That was the whole impetus of drafting him. He’s a 24-year-old guard who is seen as ready-made to enter an NBA rotation. Everything he showed at summer league makes that look like a likely outcome. He hit nearly 50 percent of his 3s, coming off of screening actions well with real speed and getting on balance before shooting. He handled the ball with confidence, pace and poise, looking exceedingly comfortable. His instinctual awareness defensively was superb, as he was always ready and in the right position, waiting to attack. He shot passing lanes, dug down onto drivers from the strong side, and was always ready with a strong closeout. He even showed some strong weak-side rim protection and swatted seven shots in four games.

He’ll be ready for whatever the Pacers ask of him as a rookie role player.

[Wizop]

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[Scoot McGroot]

https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nba/pacers/2021/10/17/chris-duarte-pacers-rookie-took-unusual-route-nba/8427172002/

Currently subscriber only, but a good look at Duarte here. Take a look at your local library online portal and see if there's an ability to read the article through their joint subscription (Indiana local, obviously)? Here in Cincinnati, I'm able to read the Enquirer articles through the library website that way.

[Wizop]

Chad Form has a piece today with early draftee rankings. He his Duarte a B+ and Jackson an A- and a possible steal at 22.

[Pacers Forever]

Chad Form has a piece today with early draftee rankings. He his Duarte a B+ and Jackson an A- and a possible steal at 22.

I think Duarte should be the higher grade of the two and don’t disagree at all that Jackson has the athletic ability and aggressive nature in his game to be a steal defensively.

I remember watching his and Kai Jones draft videos thinking they had similar potential skills of Myles Turner if they develop.

[Wizop]

Chad Form has a piece today with early draftee rankings. He his Duarte a B+ and Jackson an A- and a possible steal at 22.

I think Duarte should be the higher grade of the two

I think he was grading the pick not the player. I agree that Duarte is the better player but we got him at 13 where Jackson came at 22 basically for Aaron Holiday.

[DickGrayson]

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