Indiana Pacers Summer League roster preview

There are ten teams competing in Orlando Summer League this season with a variety of different kinds of players. As teams are filled with veterans, young prospects, and out-and-out rookies, Summer League is a time of year filled with wonder, promise, and ugly basketball.

We’ll be previewing the rosters of all ten teams that will be involved in the Orlando Summer League by giving about 30-50 words on each player and letting you know how legitimate their NBA chances are.

The next team on our list?

Indiana Pacers Summer League roster

This is the least fun, least “Summer League-y” roster in Orlando. The Pacers have brought in no draft picks and only two undrafted rookies, which means it’s basically retreads who are unlikely to make any roster.

The (lack of) Rookies

The Pacers bring no drafted rookies because they rather foolishly sold their second round pick this offseason. Here’s Seth Partnow telling you why that’s dumb.

Players Under Contract

Solomon Hill, F: Hill was the Pacers’ surprise first round pick in 2013. He defends well, has NBA length, and has good shooting potential. The Pacers might be able to find a use for him this season, especially if they end up letting Lance Stephenson go.

Donald Sloan, G: Sloan is a combo guard that can get into the lane and attack well. Last year was the first time that he didn’t spend time in the D-League, but he doesn’t have a guaranteed contract for next year which means he’ll want to try to put on a show for the Pacers to keep him.

Former NBA Players

Lavoy Allen, F: Allen is in an interesting case because he was a part of the Pacers last season, wants to stay with the organization, but still doesn’t have a contract with the team. It seems like he’s playing to try to prove to the organization that he wants to stay and that he deserves a second chance with the team. He had his best per-minute averages last season, but he’s still probably just a borderline NBA player at this point. It’s 50/50 whether or not he gets his deal.

(hours after publishing, the Pacers agreed to a one-year deal with Allen, per RealGM.)

De’Quan Jones, F: Jones surprisingly made the Magic in 2012, but was unable to stick and played in Reno last season. Overall, he had a good season in Reno scoring 14 points and 5 rebounds-per with a near 60% true-shooting percentage. He also improved his three-point shooting, and that will be the key to his potential NBA career. He’s a tremendous athlete that probably won’t make the Pacers but has a shot around the league.

Kevin Jones, F: He’s been a great D-League player for the past two years, including last year when he was an all-star. Unfortunately, he’s a bit undersized and under-athletic for the power forward spot despite his rebounding ability. The problem is that he probably needs to make it as a stretch-4, but hasn’t yet gotten range out to the three-point line. He does have a decent midrange game though, which needs to become more efficient.

James Nunnally. G/F: Nunnally got a call-up to both the Sixers and Hawks last year, playing a few games for each. He’s an excellent shooter from distance and a solid defensive player, which means that he has potential to stick as a “3 and D” guy in the league. I’d put my odds on that happening eventually, but probably not on the Pacers.

Arinze Onuaku, C: Onuaku had excellent rebounding and scoring rates inside for Canton last season. His per-36 numbers were 21.4 points and 14.6 rebounds per game with 1.4 blocks on 63% from the field. He can’t shoot from the line or from outside of 6 feet and still isn’t in excellent condition yet, but he might be able to make a team eventually as a backup, 10-minute per game center.

Undrafted Rookies

Jake Odum, G: Odum is a 6’4 combo guard from Indiana State that doesn’t quite shoot well enough from outside to make it in the NBA. He also doesn’t quite defend well enough either, meaning you’re looking at an offense only combo guard that can’t shoot. He’ll probably play in Europe for a while though and continue to return for summer leagues.

Tyler Stone, F: Stone is the more intriguing of the two prospects as a 6’8 stretch-4 with a near 7’3 wingspan. He only shot 34% from the three-point line on two attempts per game, but the mechanics and foundation of a jump shot are there at least. He probably ends up being more of a European guy, but I don’t think that he can make it in the NBA.

Non-rookie, non-NBA players

Jackie Carmichael, F: Carmichael went undrafted in 2013, surprising many as his low-post play was quite well-developed on the college level and at 6’9 with a near 7’2 wingspan, he had NBA length. He’s also a pretty strong rebounder and good post defender. While he’ll never be great in space, if he can develop a face up 15 footer then he has a good shot of making the NBA.

Dee Bost, G: An excellent defensive player that can also make plays for others, Bost is another guy on this Pacers team that can make an NBA roster. At 6’3 he has solid size for the point guard position but only has a 6’3 wingspan. He does need to work on his jump shot, but if he can iron that out I would expect he’ll make the NBA at some point.

Frank Gaines, G: Out of IPFW, Gaines is a good shooter who can get to the free throw line from the shooting guard position. The odds are high that he probably doesn’t make it to the NBA because at 6’3-4 he’s a bit undersized. However, he might be able to put on a bit of a show in summer league through his scoring ability.

Sadiel Rojas, G: Rojas was second team all-D-League defense last season, and shoots semi-well from three. His skill level probably isn’t high enough to make the NBA, but I can envision a scenario where he makes it as a Raja Bell if every single thing goes right. He’s also a really good rebounder for this size.

Willie Reed: Reed was also second team all-D-League defense for Reno. He’s a forward that rebounds well and blocks shots, but his skill level probably isn’t quite good enough to make the NBA yet.