Isaiah Jackson's 'spectacular' performance in his home state a sign of him staying ready

DETROIT -- Hattie Scott had never been to one of Isaiah Jackson's basketball games -- in his high school, college or professional career until Wednesday night. Jackson's 71-year-old grandmother "doesn't move around like she used to," Jackson said, and it's always been hard for her to go to games.

But she was there this time when the Pacers played the Pistons and Jackson came back home to Michigan. He was born in Pontiac where Scott lives about a half-hour away from Little Caesar's Arena, and most of his family comes from there or Flint, an hour away.

This time, for reasons Jackson saw no need to question, Scott decided to make the trip with the rest of the family.

"For her to be here tonight and show support, that means a lot to me," Jackson said. "I guess she was just feeling up to it tonight. I love her to death and I'm glad she came."

So Jackson put on a show for her and for the rest of his family. Jackson didn't estimate a number of tickets he had to get on this trip, but he said in the past it's been upwards of 80. In the Pacers' 122-103 over the rebuilding Detroit Pistons, Jackson scored 10 points on 4 of 7 shooting, grabbed 11 rebounds and three steals and dished out a career high six assists in 28 minutes. He was a team-high +15 in 11 first-half minutes and he got to play 17:27 in the second half with the Pacers on cruise control after they overwhelmed the Pistons in the third quarter.

"Isaiah was spectacular," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "I mean, he changed the game when he came in. ... He rebounded. He blocked shots, put pressure on the rim. He passed it. A lot of love for him in the locker room after the game. You'll see it on social media. A lot of respect for just how he's carried himself and for what a team guy he is."

Jackson was thankful to Carlisle for giving him the opportunity to play close to his hometown, especially after he had appeared in just four of the Pacers' previous 11 games and for always looking for the opportunity to play Jackson when the Pacers are in Detroit. Jackson played 17 minutes when the Pacers previously came to Little Caesar's Arena in December and last year when they played back to back games against the Pistons in March of 2023, Jackson played 52 minutes over two nights and scored a total of 30 points.

Carlisle tends to look for opportunities like those when he can find them to get players on the floor or in elevated positions in places or situations when it's particularly meaningful to them, such as their hometowns or in places where they previously played. The most notable occasion was last season when he started guards Andrew Nembhard and Bennedict Mathurin and forward Oshae Brissett -- now with the Celtics -- against the Raptors to make the Pacers the first team in NBA history to start three Canadian-born players.

"It means everything," Jackson said as rookie Jarace Walker walked past a media scrum serenading him with his version of Skylar Grey's "I'm Coming Home." "I talked to him after the game. It's something I feel like a lot of coaches don't really do. I think it just shows the care that Rick has for us, everybody in general not just tonight. It means a lot to me and it means a lot to my family too."

And Carlisle in turn appreciates how his players have been willing to sacrifice to allow him to make lineups shifts to make that happen as often as he can. On Wednesday, that meant Jalen Smith -- who edged Jackson out in the preseason competition for the backup center job behind Myles Turner and has held it for most of the season -- sat out the entire game. Smith is averaging 17.8 minutes per game this season and having the best year of his career with 10.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in those minutes, but Smith gladly stepped aside to make sure his teammate and friend had his moment.

"I talked to Jalen this morning and I told him to be ready," Carlisle said. "Myles has been dealing with a little stomach thing and we weren't for sure that he was going to play, but I said, 'Be ready, but I'm going to play Isaiah coming home to Detroit. Pontiac is right down the road.' He said, 'OK cool. Great. I'll be ready if needed.'"

But just as much as Carlisle appreciated Smith being willing to step aside so Jackson could play at home, he also appreciated that Jackson has kept himself in such a position that he had no reason to worry that giving Jackson extended minutes would be a problem.

The 22-year-old Jackson has had to live by the mantra "stay ready" throughout his three seasons in the NBA since he was drafted No. 22 overall in the 2021 draft because his role with the Pacers has changed on a near-constant basis. There have been stretches where he's had to start because Turner was injured, stretches where he's been the backup center while Smith has functioned as a power forward, and stretches when he's been stuck behind Turner and Smith and found minutes hard to come by.

Since mid-January when the Pacers acquired Pascal Siakam from the Raptors and Siakam became the starting power forward, moving Smith back to center, Jackson has been mostly stuck in that third scenario. Smith has missed seven games in that time which moved Jackson back into the rotation, and sometimes foul trouble has forced Jackson into action. However, in the 29 games since Siakam was acquired, there have been 10 games in which Jackson was healthy but did not appear at all and six games in which he played seven minutes or fewer. Prior to Wednesday night, Jackson had taken DNPs in seven of the previous 11 games.

However, Jackson has made the most of limited opportunity. The bouncy 6-9, 205-pounder has leaned into his strengths as a rim-runner, lob finisher and shot-blocker. With more than 67% of his field goal attempts coming from within 3 feet of the rim, he leads the Pacers in field goal percentage at .664. In 13.3 minutes per game, he's averaging 6.8 points and 4.1 rebounds per game as well as 1.0 blocked shots. He's averaging 18.7 points, 11.0 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per 36 minutes, which makes him the Pacers' seventh-leading scorer, third leading rebounder and leading shot blocker on that basis.

"Isaiah Jackson should be the poster person for every young player that is developing and is supposed to be staying ready," Carlisle said. "This guy has been a total pro and he's a great team guy."

Jackson and Smith have been competing for minutes on a constant basis for the last two seasons, but Carlisle has repeatedly praised both of them for how they've handled their competition. They work with assistant coach Jim Boylen together on a constant basis, Carlisle said, and they constantly push each other.

"It's been like that since we got here," Jackson said. "I love and support him and he gave me a lot of love and support tonight. It's a bond we built off the court. We talk all the time. All these guys are like brothers, but Sticks, I feel like we're in the same position. It's sort of like a big, little brother type relationship."

Smith has maintained the backup role because he's a much more reliable outside shooter -- Smith has hit 53 3-pointers this season at a 43.1% clip and Jackson has missed all four 3-point attempts he's taken -- and a little better at defending the perimeter when it's required, but Jackson's performance on Wednesday was a reminder of why Carlisle is still happy to play Jackson when necessary. He brought constant energy running the floor and changed the game at the rim and showed more feel for the ball than usual.

"He's just done a great job of staying ready when his number's called," All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton said. "Obviously, there's been some injuries with our bigs and every time he's been called upon, he's done a great job of being ready for that. I thought he was rewarded today, obviously, being home, being able to play today. I thought he did a great job of protecting the rim, rebounding, rolling. I thought he just did a great job contributing."

The performance wasn't out of character, but it was a lot easier to produce, Jackson said, because of who was in the stands.

"Just knowing my family was here watching me, man," Jackson said. "That's all the motivation I feel like anybody would need to come home and show that you still got it, the work that you've put in despite the games that you don't play. Just being ready. I think I showed that tonight."

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Isaiah Jackson 'spectacular' in front of family in win at Detroit