Oct 4, 2022; Henderson, NV, USA; Boulogne-Levallois Metropolitans 92 forward Victor Wembanyama (1) drives the ball against NBA G League Ignite forward Leonard Miller (11) during the third quarter at The Dollar Loan Center. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports
Victor Wembanyama vs Scoot Henderson glimpse into the future for building teams like Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers have made it clear that they are entering a long-term roster building project. They are hoping to grow as a team with their youth and draft picks.
Some of the extra draft picks the Pacers have are in the 2023 NBA Draft, where they will be hoping to add to their core. Indiana has their own first-round draft pick along with Boston's and Cleveland's in 2023.
That draft is shaping up to be one of the most intriguing in recent memory. The top of that draft features incredible talents such as Victor Wembanyama, Scoot Henderson, Dariq Whitehead, Nick Smith, and the Thompson brothers, Ausar and Amen. Several of those players would have been in the mix to be the number one overall pick in recent drafts.
Wembanyama and Henderson are the headliners of the class. Both are mega-talented youngsters, and NBA teams will be hoping to end up with a top-two pick so they can have the chance to select one of the pair.
Fortunately for NBA scouts, they were able to watch the duo go head-to-head twice during this week. In the Dollar Loan Center in Las Vegas, Wembanyama's Metropolitans 92 squad took on Henderson's G League Ignite in a pair of highly anticipated games.
The Pacers certainly had eyes on this game. The franchise has admitted that they are focusing on development this season, and they project to be one of the worst teams in the league this year — only one team has a lower win total projection in the SI Sportsbook. If things go as many expect, Indiana will finish with one of the worst records in the league.
If they do, and if they have draft lottery luck, the blue and gold will have their choice of Wembanyama or Henderson. And this week showed why any team, including the Pacers, would be lucky to be in that situation.
Both young players put on a show in Vegas. Wembanyama, a seven-foot-three-inch center, hit 9/18 three point attempts, canned fadeaway jumpers off the dribble, blocked nine shots, and pulled down 15 rebounds in the two games. There is little he can't do, and he looks like a special, league-changing talent.
Tall players are in every draft, and skilled offensive talents are chosen in the top-ten every year. But very rarely does a player possess both height and skill in the way Wembanyama does, and he could be one of the most unique players the NBA has ever seen if he pans out.
Henderson, meanwhile, has incredibly advanced handles and finishing abilities for a player of his experience level. He left the second game between the two teams with a knee injury, but in the first game he finished with 28 points and nine assists.
The 18-year old point guard is already crafty and resourceful with the ball, and he's able to create his own shot from essentially anywhere on the floor (even over the giant Wembanyama). He would be a number one pick in most drafts, though Wembanyama may make that a tough choice next June.
The Pacers got to see both players dazzle this week, and the franchise will hope they can land one of the talented prospects. Both would fit well in head coach Rick Carlisle's offensive system, and neither of them would subtract from the skills that Indiana's roster already has.
Speaking of Indiana, it should be noted that Pacers center Myles Turner was seen training with Wembanyama this offseason.
Whether the Pacers are able to land Wembanyama or Henderson or not may come down to draft lottery luck. Thanks to the new NBA draft lottery odds, even if the blue and gold finish with the worst record in the league, they would only have a ~27% chance at a top-two pick. Who knows where the Pacers will land in the standings this season, but if they land in the lottery, they will hope to end up with the chance to add one of these elite prospects.
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