Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe set a franchise record in the G League

Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe has put up some monster numbers in the G League and added another record to his collection this week.

Indiana Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe has put up some monster numbers in the G League this season, and the undrafted center out of Kentucky added another record to his collection.

Tshiebwe recorded 26 points, 26 rebounds, two assists, one steal and one blocked shot on Thursday to lead the Indiana Mad Ants to a win over the Long Island Nets. He went 12-of-20 from the field in 30 minutes as the Mad Ants clinched a playoff berth with the win.

The 24-year-old set the franchise single-season record for rebounds with the performance (470). He registered his fourth game with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds and is one of five players in the G League to reach that mark this season.

Tshiebwe, who is signed to a two-way contract, is averaging 15.8 points, 15.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists on 58.1% shooting from the field in 30 games with the Mad Ants. He ranks second in the G League in total rebounds, offensive rebounds and double-doubles (25).

He has established himself as one of the top players in the G League this season. He has hauled in at least 20 rebounds five times and also set the Mad Ants’ single-game record with 28 on Nov. 22 in a win over the Motor City Cruise.

Tshiebwe established himself as a dominant player in the paint in college, and he has continued to show that ability and more this year with the Mad Ants.

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NBA Rising Stars 2024: Bennedict Mathurin unanimously named MVP to lead Team Jalen to title

Pacers sophomore Bennedict Mathurin was unanimously named MVP of the 2024 NBA Rising Stars game to lead Team Jalen to the championship.

Indiana Pacers sophomore Bennedict Mathurin on Friday was unanimously named MVP of the 2024 NBA Rising Stars game to lead Team Jalen to the championship in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Mathurin produced 18 points in the opening game as Team Jalen defeated Team Tamika. He had four points, two assists and one steal in a 26-13 win in the final over Team Detlef, which consisted of seven of the top players in the G League.

While Mathurin did the bulk of the scoring in the semifinal round, Dereck Lively II had six points and Jordan Hawkins and Jalen Williams each chipped in five points in the final. Williams drained the game-winning 3-pointer to end it for Team Jalen.

The event featured four seven-player teams competing in a three-game tournament for the third straight year. The two semifinal games were played to a target score of 40, and the championship game was played to a target score of 25.

The pool of players for the game consisted of 11 rookies, 10 second-year players and seven players from the G League. The players from the NBA were selected by assistant coaches and the players from the G League were selected by the league office.

The four teams were coached by Hall of Famer Pau Gasol, Indiana Fever legend Tamika Catchings and former Pacers standouts Jalen Rose and Detlef Schrempf, who led the G League team.

Here is how the teams performed in the event.

NBA Rising Stars 2024: Full rosters revealed in draft announcement

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the four seven-player teams for the 2024 NBA Rising Stars game.

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the four seven-player teams for the 2024 NBA Rising Stars game on Feb. 16 as part of All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The event will feature four seven-player teams competing in a three-game tournament for the third straight year. The two semifinal games will be played to a target score of 40. The championship game will be played to a target score of 25.

The pool of players for the game consists of 11 rookies, 10 second-year players and seven players from the G League. The 21 players in the NBA will be drafted onto three teams. The seven players in the G League will comprise the fourth team.

The players from the NBA were selected by assistant coaches. The players from the G League were selected by the league office. Each team submitted a rookie ballot and a sophomore ballot featuring four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players of any position.

Hall of Famer Pau Gasol will return as one of the four honorary head coaches for the event. Joining Gasol are Indiana Fever legend Tamika Catchings and former Indiana Pacers standouts Jalen Rose and Detlef Schrempf, who will lead the G League team.

Here are the rosters drafted by Gasol, Catchings and Rose.

NBA Rising Stars 2024: Player pool revealed for annual showcase at All-Star Weekend

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the list of 28 players set to participate in the annual Rising Stars game on Feb. 16 at All-Star Weekend.

The NBA on Tuesday unveiled the list of 28 players set to participate in the annual Rising Stars game on Feb. 16 as part of All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The event will feature four seven-player teams competing in a three-game tournament for the third straight year. The two semifinal games will be played to a target score of 40. The championship game will be played to a target score of 25.

The pool of players for the game consists of 11 rookies, 10 second-year players and seven players from the G League. The 21 players in the NBA will be drafted onto three teams and the seven players in the G League will comprise the fourth team.

The players from the NBA were selected by assistant coaches. The players from the G League were selected by the league office. Each team submitted a rookie ballot and a sophomore ballot featuring four frontcourt players, four guards and two additional players of any position.

Hall of Famer Pau Gasol will return as one of the four honorary head coaches for the event. Joining Gasol are Indiana Fever legend Tamika Catchings and former Indiana Pacers standouts Jalen Rose and Detlef Schrempf, who will lead the G League team.

Assistant coaches from the NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs will join the honorary head coaches in coaching the Rising Stars teams. The NBA All-Star Game coaching staffs for both the Eastern and Western Conferences have yet to be determined.

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

Pacers’ Oscar Tshiebwe produced another monster game in G League

Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe produced his 11th double-double of the season in the G League to lead the Mad Ants to a win over the Squadron.

Indiana Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe produced his 11th double-double of the season in the G League to lead the Indiana Mad Ants to a win over the Birmingham Squadron.

Tshiebwe recorded 21 points, 15 rebounds and one steal in the 132-127 victory on Sunday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. He went 7-of-12 from the field in nearly 22 minutes of work as the Mad Ants improved to 3-0 in the regular season.

The undrafted center out of Kentucky registered his fourth game of the season with at least 20 points and 15 rebounds, which leads all players in the G League. He is one of five players to reach that stat line multiple times this season.

Tshiebwe, who is signed to a two-way contract, is averaging 16.7 points, 15.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists on 61.4% shooting from the field in 13 games with the Mad Ants. He leads the G League in rebounding average and is second in double-doubles.

The 23-year-old has been on a tear this season with the Mad Ants. He has registered two games with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds and set the franchise record for rebounds in a game (28) in a win over the Motor City Cruise on Nov. 22.

Tshiebwe established himself as a dominant player in the paint in college, and he has shown that ability and more so far with the Mad Ants in the G League.

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Everything we know about the Giannis Antetokounmpo game ball drama, the silliest sports saga of the year

This was all such a massive misunderstanding.

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo scored a career-high 64 points during a victory over the Indiana Pacers, then chaos ensued.

According to league insider Chris Haynes, the Pacers “took the game ball away” after the performance from the two-time MVP. Antetokounmpo then “took off” toward the Pacers locker room to try to retrieve the ball back from the franchise he had just defeated.

But there is more to the story and plenty to unpack with this situation.

So we did our best to gather all the information and put that together in a way that will make some sense.

Based on the reporting we have gathered, here is everything we know:

Rick Carlisle revealed why the Pacers wanted the game ball in loss to Bucks

After a historic performance by Giannis Antetokounmpo, Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe was indirectly at the center of a postgame fracas.

In what turned out to be a bizarre ending after an historic performance by Giannis Antetokounmpo, Indiana Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe was indirectly at the center of a postgame fracas.

Antetokounmpo produced a franchise-record 64 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to the 140-126 victory over the Pacers. He surpassed the previous franchise record of 57 points set by Michael Redd in 2006.

The situation began to unfold after the game when Antetokounmpo attempted to locate the ball used in the game. A team official with the Pacers appeared to take the game ball, which prompted Antetokounmpo to run into the tunnel to their locker room to retrieve it.

He returned to the court a few moments later without the ball and was seen having a heated conversation with Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton and assistant coach Lloyd Pierce.

He eventually left the court for the Bucks’ locker room.

Pacers coach Rick Carlisle revealed there was a miscommunication regarding the game ball and that the team wanted to keep it to celebrate Tshiebwe, who scored his first career NBA point in the contest after hitting a free throw late in the fourth quarter.

What happened after the game was unfortunate. There was a misunderstanding about the game ball. It was Oscar Tshiebwe‘s first official NBA point, so we always get the game ball. We were not thinking about Giannis’ franchise record, so we grabbed the ball, and a couple of minutes later, several of their players ended up in our hallway and there was a big fracas. I don’t think there were any punches landed, but my general manager (Chad Buchanan) got elbowed in the ribs by one of their players. … We don’t need the official game ball; there are two game balls. We could have taken the other, and it didn’t need to escalate to that.

Tshiebwe, who is signed to a two-way contract, made his first appearance with the Pacers on Wednesday. He has played almost exclusively in the G League with the Indiana Mad Ants, averaging 18.9 points, 17.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists in seven games.

The game balls are often saved by players or teams for various accomplishments on a given night. In addition to Antetokounmpo setting the Bucks’ record, and Tshiebwe scoring his first point, Damian Lillard passed Kyle Korver for fifth on the all-time 3-point list.

Antetokounmpo said he knew the Pacers took the ball after the game. The Pacers eventually delivered it to the Bucks, but Antetokounmpo questioned if it was the actual game ball.

“I have a ball, but I don’t know if it’s the game ball,” Antetokounmpo said. “It doesn’t feel like the game ball to me. It feels like a brand-new ball. I played what, 35 minutes today? I know how the game ball felt. The ball that I have — which I’ll take and give to my mom, for sure — I don’t know if it’s actually the game ball, but it’s OK. Lives continue.”

Despite the claim from Antetokounmpo, a video clip shows a referee handing the game ball to a member of the Bucks security team moments after the conclusion of the game. In other words: The entire situation was the result of some confusion.

The Pacers had won the two previous games against the Bucks this season, with the last meeting taking place in the semifinals of the in-season tournament. The contest on Wednesday featured eight total technical fouls, one flagrant foul and one ejection (Bobby Portis).

They will meet again on Jan. 1 in Milwaukee and Jan. 3 in Indianapolis.

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Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton praises Oscar Tshiebwe after record-setting game

Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe set another record in the G League and earned high praise from Tyrese Haliburton after the performance.

Indiana Pacers rookie Oscar Tshiebwe set another record in the G League and then earned high praise from All-Star teammate Tyrese Haliburton after the performance.

Tshiebwe recorded 20 points, 28 rebounds, four assists, one steal and one blocked shot on Wednesday to lead the Indiana Mad Ants to a 117-107 win over the Motor City Cruise. He went 8-of-13 from the field in 34 minutes of work in his fourth game.

The undrafted center out of Kentucky set the franchise single-game record for total rebounds and tied the record for defensive rebounds (20). It was also his third game with 20 points and 20 rebounds.

Haliburton shared his reaction to the performance.

Tshiebwe, who is signed to a two-way contract, produced 33 points and 23 rebounds in his debut with the Mad Ants on Nov. 11. He became the first player to record a 30-20 game in the G League since Justin Tillman in February 2022.

The 23-year-old is averaging 22.3 points, 20.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and one steal on 64.3% shooting from the field. He leads the G League in total rebounding, offensive rebounds per game (7.8) and double-doubles (4) in the early going.

Tshiebwe established himself as a dominant player in the paint in college, and he has shown that ability and more so far with the Mad Ants in the G League.

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Pacers’ Oscar Tshiebwe is off to a record-setting start in the G League

Pacers center Oscar Tshiebwe has played three games in the G League, and has already made history twice with the Mad Ants.

Indiana Pacers center Oscar Tshiebwe has played three games in the G League, and the undrafted rookie out of Kentucky has already made history twice with the Mad Ants.

Tshiebwe came out of the gate on fire, producing 33 points and 23 rebounds in a win over the Sioux Falls Skyforce in his debut with the Mad Ants on Saturday. He registered the first 30-20 game in franchise history.

Two games later, on Tuesday, Tshiebwe recorded 21 points, 20 rebounds and three assists in a win over the Grand Rapids Gold. He became the first player in franchise history to record two 20-20 games, and he did so in his first three games.

Tshiebwe, who is signed to a two-way contract, is the first player to record a 30-20 game in the G League since Justin Tillman in February 2022. He has helped the Mad Ants lead the league in rebounding per game (59.7) through their first three games.

The 23-year-old is averaging 23 points, 18.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals on 65.1% shooting from the field. He leads the G League in total rebounding, offensive rebounds per game (8.0) and double-doubles (3) in the early going.

Tshiebwe established himself as a dominant player in the paint in college, and he has shown that ability and more so far with the Mad Ants in the G League.

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5 undrafted rookies on two-way deals who looked like steals during NBA Summer League

How did Adama Sanogo and Oscar Tshiebwe go undrafted?

Even though it might be too early to make any sweeping judgments about strong performances at NBA Summer League, some players have stood out.

As the NBA 2K24 Summer League tournament nears an end, we took a look at a few of the standout undrafted free agents who have already exceeded expectations set by their two-way contracts signed after the 2023 NBA Draft.

While you may be familiar with some names (e.g. Adama Sanogo and Oscar Oscar Tshiebwe) already, others may feel less familiar.

This story used AI-Powered statistics provided by the Stats Perform database.

Stay tuned for our third edition of this series, which will look at players who may have earned a two-way contract (e.g. Jelly Walker, KJ Williams, Nathan Mensah and more) based on their performances in Las Vegas as well.

RELATED: 5 second-round picks in 2023 who already look like draft steals during NBA Summer League

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