Tag: Andrew Nembhard

Pacers’ Rick Carlisle loved watching Mathurin, Nembhard in Rising Stars

Carlisle was proud to watch rookies Bennedict Mathurin and Andrew Nembhard in the Rising Stars game at All-Star Weekend.

Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle on Tuesday expressed his excitement over watching rookies Bennedict Mathurin and Andrew Nembhard in the NBA Rising Stars competition at All-Star Weekend.

The two were among four Pacers players to compete in the festivities over the three days in Salt Lake City. Tyrese Haliburton was a first-time All-Star this year and competed in the 3-Point Contest with Buddy Hield.

Mathurin and Nembhard helped Team Pau to the Rising Stars title by defeating Team Joakim in the finale. Mathurin scored seven points in each game and Nembhard totaled two points, three assists and one rebound.

Carlisle was happy the rookies had the opportunity to experience it.

The Rising Stars was awesome. Benn and Drew both showed very well and represented the organization great. For the Pacers, All-Star Weekend was a huge win. … One of the passes Drew threw to him was really old school like Magic Johnson or Larry Bird type of stuff. That was really cool. I’m really happy for those guys. It is an amazing experience.

Mathurin is averaging 17.2 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 60 games this season with the Pacers. He is second in scoring among rookies and one of two first-year players (Paolo Banchero) with multiple 30-point games this season.

Nembhard earned the selection after posting 8.1 points, 4.2 assists, 2.8 rebounds and one steal in 53 games. He is second in the rookie class in assists and was the only second-round pick last year selected to the Rising Stars.

The two have emerged as key players for the Pacers. They project to have bright futures and hope they can one day join Haliburton by playing on Sunday.

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NBA Rising Stars 2023: Full rosters revealed in draft announcement

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the four seven-player teams for the 2023 NBA Rising Stars game.

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the four seven-player teams for the 2023 NBA Rising Stars competition set to take place on Feb. 17 as part of All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The showcase will feature four seven-player teams competing in a mini-tournament consisting of three games for the second straight year. Each game will be played to a final target score, meaning a game will end with a made basket or a made free throw instead of a running clock.

The pool of 28 players for the game consists of 11 first-year players, 10 second-year players and seven players from the G League. The rookies and sophomores were selected by assistant coaches, and the G League players were chosen by the league office.

The G League players will comprise one of the four teams.

The three teams from the NBA will be coached by Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah and Deron Williams. The three former players each selected seven players to their teams on Tuesday in an order determined by career All-Star appearances: Gasol (6), Williams (3) and Noah (2).

Here are the four rosters for the NBA Rising Stars competition.

Pacers’ Andrew Nembhard reacts to Rising Stars game selection

Nembhard was one of 11 rookies selected to compete in the 2023 NBA Rising Stars game at All-Star Weekend.

Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard was one of 11 rookies selected on Tuesday to compete in the 2023 NBA Rising Stars game at All-Star Weekend on Feb. 17 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Nembhard, the 31st pick, is averaging 8.5 points, four assists, 2.9 rebounds and one steal on 42.8% shooting from the field in 45 games this season. He is currently the only qualified rookie who is averaging at least four assists and one steal per game.

He is also one of five rookies to register at least one 30-point game.

Along with Nembhard, the Pacers will also send Bennedict Mathurin to the annual showcase. He is a candidate for Rookie of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year after averaging 17.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists. He leads all players with 843 points off the bench.

Pacers coach Rick Carlisle is happy for both players.

The team gave these guys a shoutout today as we began practice and we had both of them make a little speech. They were great. They both thanked their teammates. It is pretty cool. I think everyone knew Benn was going to be on it. We hoped that Andrew would be, too. The guy has started a whole bunch of games so it is well-deserved for both of those guys.

Nembhard did not play in the season opener, but was utilized in the very next game and has since played a large role with the team. He has started 34 times this season and is averaging 9.1 points, 4.4 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.2 steals in that role.

“It is a great honor just to be recognized as one of the young guys in the league that is doing well right now,” Nembhard said. “I was talking to somebody yesterday (saying), ‘It is a cool recognition but I want to do so much more in my career further than that.'”

He was the only second-round pick from the 2022 draft class selected for the event, which was voted on by assistant coaches across the league. In fact, of those rookies chosen, only Walker Kessler (22nd pick) and Nembhard were drafted outside of the top 20.

Carlisle has often said that he believes Nembhard will eventually go down as one of the 10 best rookies from this draft class based on his play thus far. Nembhard has played well beyond his years and is looking like the biggest steal of the second round.

“I know not a lot of second-round picks get (this) opportunity (for Rising Stars) but I’ve gotten a lot of opportunity here just to show what I can do,” Nembhard said. “I give all of the credit to the Pacers for just allowing me to show my game.”

The Pacers look to have one of the top up-and-coming rosters in the league. In addition to their two Rising Stars selections, the team also has Myles Turner, Buddy Hield, Tyrese Haliburton, Chris Duarte and several others in the mix.

Nembhard is looking forward to representing the team with Mathurin.

“That’ll be fun,” Nembhard said. “That’ll be fun just to hang out with my guy. We’re real close. To experience that together — it’s a real fun game — we’ll have a fun time.”

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Rick Carlisle: Thunder wanted to draft Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard

“I think Sam Presti told me that they were going to take him at (34) if we hadn’t taken him at 31.”

During practice on Wednesday, Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle revealed an interesting bit of intel related to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

When asked about rookie guard Andrew Nembhard, Carlisle revealed the Thunder were the other big competitor to draft him during the 2022 NBA draft.

“Andrew Nembhard was a guy that Kevin (Pritchard) had been talking about all year last year as a guy he liked. He played one of the two days in Chicago at the pre-draft camp and played well. Then, it was just a matter of getting lucky and having him be there at 31 because I think Oklahoma was at 32 and I think Sam Presti told me that they were going to take him at 32 if we hadn’t taken him at 31. A lot of things fell into place.”

While Carlisle misspoke a bit — the Thunder owned the 34th pick not the 32nd in this past draft — this is the first time it has been noted that Oklahoma City had interest in Nembhard, who is enjoying a phenomenal rookie campaign.

In 45 games, the 23-year-old is averaging 8.5 points on 42.8% shooting, four assists and 2.9 rebounds.

While Jaylin Williams — the player the Thunder selected at No. 34 — has had a decent rookie campaign, adding a steal in Nembhard to go along with Chet Holmgren, Ousmane Dieng and Jalen Williams would’ve made this already good draft class to a great one.

Alas, that’s how the draft process goes. Such a volatile process makes misses/close calls like Nembhard an inherent part of it.

The full video can be watched below:

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NBA Rising Stars 2023: Player pool revealed for annual showcase

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the list of 28 players set to participate in the annual Rising Stars game on Feb. 17.

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the list of 28 players set to participate in the annual Rising Stars game on Feb. 17 as part of All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The showcase game will feature four seven-player teams competing in a mini-tournament consisting of three games for the second straight year. Each game will be played to a final target score, meaning a game will end with a made basket or a made free throw instead of a running clock.

The pool of 28 players for the game consists of 11 first-year players, 10 second-year players and seven players from the G League. The rookies and sophomores were selected by assistant coaches and the G League players were chosen by the league office.

The 21 NBA players were selected by assistant coaches across the league. Each team submitted a rookie ballot and sophomore ballot featuring four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players of any position, in order of preference.

The three NBA teams will be coached by Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah and Deron Williams. Jazz assistant coach Jason Terry, who previously coached the Grand Rapids Gold, will lead the G League team. Assistants from the All-Star Game staffs will also coach in the event.

TNT will televise the competition beginning at 9 p.m. EST.

Ja Morant said rookie Andrew Nembhard ‘told my pops to shut up’ before scuffle in Grizzlies-Pacers

Tee Morant also recently got into it with Shannon Sharpe.

Welcome to Layup Lines, our basketball newsletter where we’ll prep you for the tip-off of tonight’s action, from what to watch to bets to make. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox.

Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant got into a bit of an altercation during a recent win over the Indiana Pacers.

It wasn’t entirely clear what caused the scuffle between Morant and members of the opposing team. The guard was initially seen jawing with Pacers wing Chris Duarte after a free throw from Indiana’s Isaiah Jackson. Members from both teams got involved before the two sides were eventually separated.

During his post-game interview, Morant was asked to provide more clarity. He said that Pacers rookie Andrew Nembhard actually started the incident:

“Andrew told my pops to shut up. Pretty much, I heard my pops like ask him if he said shut up. So I was trying to figure out who he was talking to. Obviously, I had seen it was him, so I approached him, seeing what he was on. Checked his temperature. He didn’t have a fever. Then Duarte came over, tried to push me … I told him stop pushing me. He said he was cooling. Then his teammates came over, then he started talking.” 

Morant’s father, Tee Morant, was also recently involved in a dispute with FS1’s Shannon Sharpe (who wore a stylish cardigan) during a recent Lakers game in Los Angeles.

Ja clearly wasn’t happy that Nembhard was disrespectful toward Tee. Meanwhile, Morant’s best friend Davonte Pack (who is also known as DTap) was escorted out of the arena for his role in escalating Sunday’s altercation.

It was a bizarre scene and you can watch it in its entirety right here:

The Tip-Off

Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports

NBA content from around the USA TODAY Sports network.

Speaking of the Grizzlies, Memphis big man Jaren Jackson Jr. found himself at the center of an incredibly dumb controversy this past weekend.

There was a Reddit post that claimed Memphis scorekeepers were cooking the books to make Jackson’s potential Defensive Player of the Year campaign more impressive. There are several reasons why that is not true:

“Let’s fully ignore all of his blocks and steals and defensive counting stats that can potentially be fudged by a scorekeeper.

The Athletic’s Seth Partnow has a fascinating metric that does not use blocks to calculate rim protection. Instead, he involves rim FG% allowed vs. contests, frequency of contests, and opponent rim attempt rate while a player is on the floor.

Jackson leads the league in rim protection points saved, and while he is 2.2 points per 100 possession better at home than on the road, his splits at home and on the road would both rank as the best in the league.”

The league uses auditors and tons of additional camera angles to verify all stats.

In the age of popularized sports gambling, there is simply no way anybody would get away with fudging the numbers. Jackson just records more blocks at home than he does on the road. It’s fairly simple stuff!

One To Watch

Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

(All odds via Tipico.)

Kings (-115, -1.5) vs. Timberwolves (-105), O/U 237.5, 8:00 PM ET

Over the course of their last ten games, both the Kings and the Timberwolves are 7-3. Based on net ratings, Sacramento and Minnesota are two of the five best teams in the Western Conference this month since the new year began. Anthony Edwards has turned it up a notch of late, but the Kings remain as the No. 3 seed in the West.

Shootaround

— Patrick Beverley brilliantly used a photographer’s camera to a ref to prove LeBron was fouled and got a tech

— LeBron James’ emotional reaction to a missed foul call in Lakers-Celtics became a funny meme

— Joel Embiid discusses the scuffle between Georges Niang, and Shake Milton in recent win

— HoopsHype’s Notebook: Latest on Myles Turner, Bojan Bogdanovic, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Bones Hyland

Rookie Power Rankings: Paolo Banchero reigns supreme at the halfway point

Rookie Wire took a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2022-23 season.

The season is at the halfway point as most teams around the NBA have played at least half of their 82 games as the schedule heads toward a jam-packed lineup on Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

With the first half of the season in the books, the basketball community has received a great look at the current rookie class. While Paolo Banchero and Bennedict Mathurin have separated themselves as the top two players, others have had great performances, as well.

Banchero is the overwhelming favorite to win Rookie of the Year with Mathurin behind him in second. It looks to be down to those two players for the annual award, while the race to fill the two All-Rookie teams should be much more competitive.

To make sense of it all, we looked at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the latest edition of the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but, rather, to illustrate the best players week to week.

Pacers’ Andrew Nembhard voted biggest draft steal at midseason

Nembhard was voted the biggest steal of the draft at the midway point of the season by a panel of media members.

Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard was voted the biggest steal of the draft by a panel of 30 beat writers or columnists representing each market in the league, according to Mark Medina of NBA.com.

Nembhard is averaging 8.4 points, 3.7 assists, 3.1 rebounds and one steal on 40% shooting from 3-point range in 36 games. He has emerged as a key player with the Pacers this season and has started 27 games, averaging 9.3 points, 3.9 assists and 3.3 rebounds in that role.

The 31st pick is ninth in scoring among all first-year players and is second in 3-point percentage and third in assists. He is also one of four rookies with at least one 30-point game this season after recording a career-high 31 points on Dec. 5.

Which rookie has been the biggest steal related to where he was selected in the 2022 Draft?

  1. Andrew Nembhard, Indiana (No. 31) – 30%
  2. Walker Kessler, Utah (No. 22) – 23%
  3. Bennedict Mathurin, Indiana (No. 6) – 17%

Nembhard has earned high praise throughout the season.

After his career night last month, head coach Rick Carlisle said Nembhard would be a top-10 pick in a redraft based on his production this season. He believes Nembhard plays with poise well beyond his years and can affect games on both ends of the court.

Certainly, Nembhard is quickly emerging as one of the top rookies this season and is doing so as a second-round pick. It may be far too early to say he should have been a top-10 pick, but the 22-year-old is making a strong case for himself.

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Rookie Power Rankings: Paolo Banchero claims the top spot again

Rookie Wire took a look at the top first-year players over the last two weeks of the 2022-23 season.

After some bumps and bruises, the top of the current rookie class looks back on track and performing at a high level over the past two weeks.

Several high draft picks recently experienced some minor setbacks with injury or on-court struggles, but appear to have gotten back on track and are impressing once again. Elsewhere, others selected later in the draft are also putting up strong performances.

To make sense of it all, we took a look at the best recent performances of these first-year players and ranked them in the latest edition of the Rookie Wire Power Rankings. The rankings are not for Rookie of the Year purposes but, rather, to illustrate the best players week to week.

Rick Carlisle: Andrew Nembhard is a top-10 rookie in 2022 draft class

Nembhard had a career performance and became the only rookie this season with at least 30 points and 10 assists in a game.

Andrew Nembhard was a second-round pick in the NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers, but head coach Rick Carlisle believes the 31st pick would be selected much higher in a redraft.

The praise by Carlisle came after Nembhard dropped 31 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds and one steal in a 112-104 win on the road against the Golden State Warriors. He went 13-of-21 from the field, including 5-of-7 from 3-point range, in 41 minutes.

He set career highs in each statistical category with the performance and became only the third rookie over the last 20 years to record at least 30 points, 10 assists and five 3s in a game. He is also one of three rookies ever to reach that stat line with eight rebounds.

Carlisle was once again impressed by Nembhard.

I’ve been saying that down the line when HoopsHype does their redraft of the 2022 draft, he’d be a top-15 pick. I’m elevating that to the top 10. He really is a special player. Our basketball people — Kevin Pritchard, Chad Buchanon, Kelly (Krauskopf) and Ted (Wu) — just hit it out of the park with him. This guy has got amazing poise. He is strong. He is old-school but new-school. He is special.

Nembhard is the only rookie this season to record at least 30 points and 10 assists and is one of three first-year players with 30 points in a game (Paolo Banchero, Bennedict Mathurin). It was only his seventh game of the season scoring in double figures.

The performance continued a strong run by Nembhard this season.

He is averaging 9.1 points, 4.2 assists and 2.8 rebounds on 42.9% shooting from 3-point range in 19 games. He ranks eighth among rookies in scoring and is first in 3-point percentage and second in assists among qualified players.

The 22-year-old even drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to beat the Lakers last week on the road. He credits his teammates and coaching staff for his recent play.

The team gives confidence to other guys. They have super confidence in me. The coaching staff has super confidence in me. We just wanted to stick together down the stretch. I think it was just a great, team win altogether.

Nembhard and Mathurin have given the Pacers tremendous production this season. Mathurin earned his first start of the season versus the Warriors and produced 14 points in 40 minutes of work. They are a big reason the Pacers are 13-11 and in fifth place.

Said Buddy Hield:

Those guys are not shy of the moment. I think everybody gives them the confidence to do that. I think (there are) teams that rookies don’t really have that role but everybody gives them the confidence to do that and it is great.

The Pacers have constructed a nice, young core over the past year after opting to retool. Nembhard and Mathurin have been great additions to a core that also features Myles Turner, Hield, Tyrese Haliburton, Chris Duarte and Isaiah Jackson.

The team looks to be on an upward trajectory based on its start and that has a lot to do with Nembhard and Mathurin. They have earned their playing time and appear poised to continue making plays when needed for their team.

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