Up until the 18th pick, the biggest Indiana Pacers news had been trade talks between the Pacers and Boston Celtics regarding Paul George, but with those talks reportedly stalling, the focus turned back to the draft itself, where Indiana took UCLA forward TJ Leaf.
Leaf led the Bruins in scoring as a freshman, averaging 16.9 points per game on 46.6% from three point range, averaging 8.2 rebounds. Evan Morris covered Leaf a month ago on Indy Cornrows, outlining his strengths and weaknesses, including his gifted offensive game.
Evan’s outlined weaknesses however may be a concern for an already soft team that will struggle more defensively without George.