Pacers Keeping Tabs on 2 Key Elements of Bennedict Mathurin’s Game This Year, Says Insider

Jun 22, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) dribbles the ball against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Alex Caruso (9) during the first half of game seven of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

This season, the Indiana Pacers will be keeping tabs on a pair of key elements in shooting guard Bennedict Mathurin's game.

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Michael Shearer of HoopsHype indicates that the newly elevated full-time starter will be watched closely, as he awaits a potential rookie-scale salary extension.

"If the three-ball starts splashing the way it should (and his defense improves enough that Chauncey Billups doesn’t have to keep benching him), Sharpe still has borderline All-Star potential."https://t.co/urxLFdb93P

— HoopsHype (@hoopshype) September 7, 2025

"For the first time in his career, Mathurin enters training camp as the unquestioned Day One starter," Shearer writes. "He’s due an extension, and the Pacers brass will be watching carefully to see if he has improved his off-ball defense and decision-making."

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"Putting the ball in the bucket has never been a problem for Mathurin, but he’ll have the opportunity to show that he’s colored in the rest of his game," Shearer adds.

The fourth-year wing out of Arizona averaged 16.1 points on .458/.340/.831 shooting splits, 5.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 0.7 steals across 72 regular season bouts (49 starts, although that was largely thanks to one of starters Andrew Nembhard or Aaron Nesmith missing most of the middle of the season).

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The 6-foot-5 wing missed the Pacers' entire playoff run in 2024 due to a right shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum.

Mathurin made up for lost time this past spring and summer, during the 50-32 Pacers' run to the NBA Finals and a seven-game series loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

During those Finals, Mathurin showed off his improved scoring, notching his playoff-best 27 points across just 22 minutes as a reserve while helping lead the Pacers to a 116-107 Game 3 win and a 2-1 edge in the Finals.

Mathurin is eligible to be signed to a rookie-scale contract extension ahead of this season. The deadline for that is October 20. Otherwise, he'll head into 2025-26 in anticipation of being a restricted free agent.

He should get plenty of touches on an Indiana team angling to redistribute its offense without its best player, two-time All-NBA point guard Tyrese Haliburton. The 25-year-old tore his Achilles tendon in Game 7 of the Finals, and has already been ruled out for the entire 2025-26 season.

Former starting shooting guard Andrew Nembhard will be replacing Haliburton to run point, which has opened up the starting two-guard spot for Mathurin.

For more news and notes on the Indiana Pacers, visit Indiana Pacers on SI.