Multiple 2025 NBA Draft Picks on Display in Pacers' Win Against Nets

The Brooklyn Nets and Indiana Pacers don't have much to play for at this point in the season.

The two teams are No. 13 and No. 14 in the Eastern Conference right now, a long ways away from playoff contention. Both Brooklyn and Indiana have a number of young players on the roster, and are in the midst of rebuilding periods.

After Tyrese Haliburton tore his achillies in the 2025 NBA Finals, the Pacers elected to aim for a higher pick in the 2026 NBA Draft by moving on from a few key pieces of the squad. For Indiana, the goal appears to be adding a premier draft prospect to a core that has already made deep playoff runs.

Brooklyn, on the other hand, seems to be in a total rebuild, as the group has a roster made up almost entirely of young players, with Michael Porter Jr. being the exception. The Nets used five draft picks in the first round last summer, and could add to its assortment of rookies with a premier pick in this year's class.

On Wednesday night against Indiana, Brooklyn's first-year players nearly helped the group earn a win, but a game-high 23 points from Jarace Walker led Indiana to a 115-110 victory.

Rookie guard Kam Jones was in the Pacers' starting lineup alongaide Walker, and finished with 11 points, 6 assists and 2 rebounds while shooting 5-of-12 from the field and 1-of-6 from 3-point range. After being selected No. 38 overall in the 2025 class, Jones is averaging 2.6 points, 1.2 assists and a rebound in 10.8 minutes per game in 17 appearances.

Jones was just one point away from his NBA career-best 12 points, which came in his only other start this season.

Taelon Peter, another member of the 2025 draft class, chipped in 14 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals while shooting 5-of-11 from the field and 4-of-10 from beyond the arc while committing zero turnovers in the Pacers' win.

Like Jones, Peter hasn't played much this season, averaging 1.9 points and a rebound while shooting 29.8% from the field and 27.9% from deep in 7.8 minutes per game across 23 appearances.

For the Nets, rookie guard Nolan Traore scored a team-high 20 points, shooting 8-of-13 from the field and 2-of-3 from 3-point range. The 19-year-old added 8 assists, 2 rebounds and a steal against Indiana.

Traore is averaging 7 points, 3.4 assists and 1.6 rebounds per game while shooting 38.8% from the field and 32.6% from beyond the arc after being selected No. 19 overall.

Three other Nets' rookies also finished in double figures, as Danny Wolf scored 14 points, Egor Demin notched with 13 points and Ben Saraf logged 12 points in 17 minutes. Brooklyn's other first-round draft pick, Drake Powell, accumulate 6 points, an assist, a rebound and a block.

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