Pacers GM Reveals What Bennedict Mathurin Needs to Eliminate in His Game

Chad Buchanan talked about what the young star needs to improve on.

Feb 24, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) shoots the ball while Denver Nuggets forward Zeke Nnaji (22) defends in the first half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

The Indiana Pacers were able to survive a lot of injuries early in the season. Aaron Nesmith's injury just a few games into the season threw the starting lineup into chaos.

Bennedict Mathurin was thrust into the starting lineup for a lot of the season. He played very well in Nesmith's stead, putting up career-high numbers while Nesmith was recovering.

Right before the All-Star break, Nesmith finally moved back into the starting lineup. Now the Pacers have the lineup that they thought they were going to have.

Mathurin is now back on the bench where he can be the leading scorer on that unit. He doesn't have to worry about doing much else besides scoring and rebounding.

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While Mathurin has improved in a lot of areas this season, there are still some things that he needs to improve on. Pacers GM Chad Buchanan has one specific area that he wants to see him improve in.

Speaking on Setting the Pace, he revealed that he'd like to see more consistency from him.

“I think his overall feel and overall fit for our system and his style of play, we’re seeing growth there, it may not be every night, and that’s part of your development as a young player. Can you do it for 7-8 games in a row rather than two games on, a couple of rough games, the peaks and valleys we’re trying to eliminate those with our young players, Benedict’s a great example of it.”

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Mathurin has shown that he is still prone to bouts of inconsistent play. That was evident on Monday night against the Denver Nuggets on the second night of a back-to-back.

He had just eight points on 3-7 shooting. He wasn't as effective off the bench as he has been in some recent games. If the Pacers are going to make another big run in the playoffs, they need him to be a really good player off the bench.

So far this season, Mathurin is averaging 16.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game.

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