Why Bennedict Mathurin's injury could finally force Jarace Walker into the Pacers rotation

INDIANAPOLIS ‒ The Pacers took Bennedict Mathurin and Jarace Walker in the 2022 and 2023 drafts with their first two top-nine picks in over 30 years in large part because they entered the league with very different positions and skill sets.

After taking a high-scoring guard in Mathurin with the No. 6 pick in 2022, they went with a defense-oriented forward in Walker at No. 8 in 2023, presuming they had covered multiple bases.

So it's perhaps a little unexpected then, that Mathurin's season-ending surgery to repair a torn labrum creates an opportunity for Walker, but it might open up the rookie's best hope at consistent extended minutes so far. With Mathurin done for the season and veteran wing Doug McDermott still out with a strained right calf, the Pacers could use someone to take up the other wing spot next to fellow rookie Ben Sheppard in the second unit, and Walker has positioned himself to do that.

He was drafted as a power forward at 6-7, 248 pounds, and his size fits that bill, but the Pacers also see enough perimeter skill in his game on both ends of the floor to like him as a small forward. He started getting opportunities there in January and could crack rotation there now.

"Jarace can play 3 and 4," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said after practice Friday, when he remained hopeful Mathurin's injury would be a short-term issue. "Really since the game in Sacramento (on Jan. 18), he played a lot of 3 in that game. He demonstrated that he can do it. He can make plays with the ball. He shoots it good and he has really good feel. I like the way he played against Minnesota and we need him."

For much of the season, the Pacers haven't needed Walker because of their depth. He was drafted, in part, because last season, they lacked options at power forward. But they traded for forward Obi Toppin shortly after the draft, and had to find ways to get several wings on the floor from positions 2-4, including Mathurin, Bruce Brown, Buddy Hield and Aaron Nesmith, as well as to play all three of their point guards, All-Star Tyrese Haliburton, veteran T.J. McConnell and Andrew Nembhard.

Walker appeared in just five of the Pacers' first 21 games, and has now played in 22 of their 64. He's played double-figure minutes in 10 games and total of 224 minutes, just over 10 per appearance.

So to make sure Walker was getting an opportunity to develop, the Pacers got him extended work with the G League's Indiana Mad Ants, which has been easier this season because they play at Gainbridge Fieldhouse before moving to Noblesville next year. He's played 18 games with the Mad Ants and his 614 total minutes ‒ 34.1 per game ‒ are more than double what he has seen in NBA games.

The Pacers had recently acquired All-Star forward Pascal Siakam talk with Walker about the importance of getting the most out of the G League experience. Siakam played extensively with Toronto's G League affiliate the Raptors 905 before he established himself as a key piece of their 2018-19 championship run.

"He basically said, 'Just give them a reason to show them you don’t belong,'" Walker said, meaning that he doesn't belong in the G League, but in the NBA. "I feel like I don’t belong, I feel like this (with the Pacers) is exactly where I need to be. It’s just continuing to prove that each and every day."

Walker has shown signs he belongs in the NBA ‒ and that he can operate as a perimeter player ‒ by averaging 21.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game in G League play. He's shooting 46.9% and, most notably, 40% from 3-point range, a sign of drastic improvement in his outside shot. He shot 34.7% from 3-point range in his lone college season at Houston and made just 5 of 28 3-pointers in Summer League play. In his limited action with the Pacers, he's 15 of 39 from 3-point range, a healthy 38.5%.

"I feel like it’s perfect," Walker said. "I feel like there’s multiple positions I can play, obviously 3 being one of them, but my ability to just get the rebound, run, push it in transition, find teammates, but also on defense as well, it helps to have big guys around me. ... It’s playing more wing, being able to catch and go, get downhill, obviously catch and shoot. Being on the floor, there’s a ton of space with Tyrese and the other guys, it makes it easy.”

The Pacers also believe it's a good fit on the defensive end. The transition for Walker from college to NBA defense has been a little difficult, in part because he's been prone to gambling for steals and blocked shots. That served him well at Houston, where he averaged 1.0 steals and 1.3 blocks on one of the nation's best defenses.

He learned quickly that wouldn't work in the NBA, so he has worked on staying down and pushing back on his own instincts to avoid lunging at the ball when he sees an opportunity.

"He’s more disciplined," veteran center Myles Turner said. "I think in college you can get away with a lot of those gambles and stuff like that. You can rely on instinct. In high school, it’s the same thing. At this level, I think he learned that right away. When you gamble, you hurt the team.”

Carlisle criticized Walker for "willy-nilly" gambles early in the season, but noted he hasn't brought that up in a while because he felt like Walker corrected it.

And that has been a theme for his rookie season, Carlisle said. Generally, Walker has done what they told him to do, and now that the Pacers' depth has shrunk, they need him to use those lessons.

"With Jarace Walker, when you talk to him about working on things and you gotta avoid doing this and start doing more of that, he does it," Carlisle said. "He does it. I’ve been impressed with his ability to be coach, his willingness to be coached, his willingness to go to the G League and go on trips and take on the responsibility of being the leader on that team. He’s learned a lot from that. ... He is gaining a greater and greater appreciation for what it takes to not only get minutes but be an effective NBA player."

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers: Benedict Mathurin's injury could mean minutes for Jarace Walker