Three takeaways from Indiana Pacers 2023 Summer League loss against Oklahoma City Thunder
The Indiana Pacers fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night for their first loss of Summer League play.
It was the Pacers defense that struggled in the loss. They conceded 98 points, 13 more than they did in either of their first two Summer League battles. They gave up 20+ points every quarter, which was too much to overcome.
Indiana's three returning higher draft picks — Andrew Nembhard, Isaiah Jackson, and Bennedict Mathurin — all did not play. Their time playing with the Summer Pacers is over. Instead, Isaiah Wong, Oscar Tshiebwe, and Kendall Brown started.
The blue and gold had a poor offensive showing in the first quarter (13 points scored) and a rough defensive performance in the second quarter (30 points allowed). Those two factors combined had the team down by 11 points at halftime, and that margin proved to be the difference.
The Pacers saw some nice moments from their younger players who have signed a contract ahead of the 2023-24 season, but they still dropped to 2-1 in Summer League play. There are some takeaways that will be important to monitor in the team's final games in Las Vegas.
Indiana's bench struggled
The Pacers second unit had an off night. The five bench players who got minutes for the team in this game were a combined 10/33 (30.3%) from the field, and they added four turnovers.
All of them finished the game with a +/- below zero. The Pacers made their first substitutions of the game at the 3:16 mark of the first quarter, and they trailed by just three at the time. They were down by 12 by the time a starter re-entered the game.
That bench group features Eli Brooks — who spent last season with the Pacers' G League affiliate — as well as 47th overall pick Mojave King. They will need to be better if Indiana wants to win games going forward.
The two-way contract players had effective nights
As it stands, the Pacers have two players signed to two-way contracts — Wong and Tshiebwe. Both of them officially signed with the team nine days ago.
Against the Thunder, both players showed what their best skills are. For Wong, that was his scoring. He finished with 17 points on 7/13 shooting, and he added four assists. He was impactful on the offensive end, and he has bounced back well from a rough first game.
"We just play together. Play hard, play together, and we're going to get the job done," Wong said of what it would take to get the win during an interview on the NBA TV broadcast.
Tshiebwe, meanwhile, had six points and 11 rebounds. He is a monster on the glass, and he showed it tonight. Indiana won his minutes by four points despite the loss.
Jarace Walker expanded his game
The Pacers talented lottery pick, Jarace Walker, showed even more of his skills in this outing. He was the ball handler for pick and rolls, defended centers, and attacked the rim more in this game.
On some occasions, it looked clunky. It took him a while to get his shots to fall, and he had three turnovers. But things clicked in the second half, and Walker had another solid performance.
The rookie finished with 20 points, nine rebounds, two assists, and one steal. He continues to be the most important player to watch on the Summer League Pacers, who next hit the court on Friday to take on the Dallas Mavericks.
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