Stronger, more confident Jalen Smith earned the Indiana Pacers backup center job
As the Indiana Pacers entered preseason play, it still wasn't clear who their backup center would be. Isaiah Jackson, Jalen Smith, and Daniel Theis all had a case to make for the role, and general manager Chad Buchanan said that the battle would be decided on the court.
Isaiah Jackson was the backup five during the Pacers preseason opener. Daniel Theis started the next game. Nothing was clear early.
In the second half of Indiana's second exhibition game, everything turned. Smith was brilliant. With foul trouble impacting other bigs, the 23-year old played a flawless game. He had nine second-half points without missing a shot, and Indiana was +4 in that half with Smith on the court.
He finished the outing with 11 points and six rebounds in under 13 minutes. He made every shot he took. The blue and gold were hoping that somebody would earn the backup center job, and Smith started to at that moment.
"Competition brings the best out of everybody," Smith said during the preseason. He was able to block out the fact that he was fighting for playing time during training camp. "At the end of the day, it's just basketball."
Smith was excellent again during his third preseason game, finishing with nine points and seven rebounds on 4/6 shooting. He was Indiana's second best big man again, and that carried over into the final tune-up outing. Rightfully, Smith had earned the backup center job
"I mean, yeah," Smith said when asked if he played well in the preseason. But he wasn't at all satisfied. "[There's] a lot of things I can improve on."
That mentality is what helped the four-year pro earn playing time. He wanted to get better. All summer, he focused on his game, and not just one specific part. He worked on just about everything.
He could fully commit to the center position, something that wasn't the case in the prior summer — Smith started at power forward early in the 2022-23 campaign. He trained in Maryland, his home state, while also spending a ton of time in Indianapolis working with Pacers assistant Jim Boylen.
"There's nobody that worked harder than Jalen Smith in the summer," Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said this week. He praised Smith's preparation and defensive improvements. "He's been a good rebounder, he can block shots."
Carlisle went on to explain that Smith's summer work in Indy wasn't just limited to basketball. He also worked on his body and got stronger. That's been a clear area of growth for the 2020 lottery pick early in the season. He's been able to defend well, and defend with physicality, in ways that he couldn't before.
That made him a weapon defensively against Evan Mobley last week. It changed the game — Smith was a +17 in a 12-point victory. In fact, the Pacers have outscored their opponent in Smith's minutes during all three of his appearances this season. He's a +25 on the year so far.
The Maryland product is now 243 or so pounds, over a 10-pound jump from last season. The added weight is helpful. He isn't slower or ground bound, but he is stronger and more physical. The changes to his body have made Smith a better player.
"[Smith] is just all confidence. I think he can do everything," Pacers starting center Myles Turner said. "He can shoot, he can make stuff down low, he can roll. I think his thing is just getting that dose of confidence," he added. Turner thinks that Smith looks like a whole new player from last season.
So far, in three appearances, Smith is averaging 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game in 16 minutes a night. His per-minute numbers in both categories are at career-best levels. All that has come with 70% shooting from the field and 57.1% shooting from long range. Those numbers won't stay that high, but they still show how good Smith has been so far this season.
"In the summer, I'm working on my overall game. Just pretty much being prepared for whatever," the young big man said of his offseason. He's been better in many ways so far.
With Smith being in-market often during the offseason, he participated in many scrimmages with his teammates. The Pacers tracked who won the most of those games heading into the season, and Smith was the victor. He was awarded with a bottle of wine, and he gave a speech to the team.
"That was interesting," Carlisle said.
At that point, it was clear that Smith had made strides. And those improvements are what allowed him to earn Indiana's backup center job. With the way he is playing, he could hold it for a while.
"It's been my intensity and physicality," Smith said of where he made strides. An extra year in the league has given him more force, and he is better at finding his spots.
He is an evolved player, and Jalen Smith now has an everyday role with the Indiana Pacers. He earned it.
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