Chris Duarte through the first week of the NBA season has been tremendous with the Indiana Pacers and is likely the top first-year player in such a small sample size.
Duarte leads all rookie players in scoring, averaging 19.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and two assists in four games with the Pacers. He has converted on 41.2% of his shot attempts from the field, including 44.8% (13-of-29) from 3-point range.
The 13th overall pick produced 27 points in the Pacers’ season opener, a franchise record for a rookie debut. He has scored in double figures in each game, producing at least 15 points in those contests while averaging 3.3 made 3-pointers.
phew 😳@C_Duarte5 | #GoldBlooded pic.twitter.com/l5j1YM3MXg
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) October 26, 2021
Duarte is earning some recognition from around the NBA with his play.
Sacramento Kings guard Tyrese Haliburton recently appeared on the “Old Man & the Three” podcast with JJ Redick alongside teammate Davion Mitchell. The group discussed their biggest surprises of the first week of the season with Haliburton singling out Duarte.
He has been ballin’! I didn’t really watch much of him. They got to the tournament and Oregon was playing pretty good so I was like, ‘Oh, he is pretty nice.’ But, definitely wasn’t expecting this. He looks nice.
Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle previously praised Duarte for being a fearless player on the court and he has shown that so far. The team has relied on him in crunch-time minutes, and he has responded by hitting some timely shots.
The team believed Duarte could play a big role to start the season and the rookie is showing he is capable of contributing on a nightly basis. The start by Duarte has to be one bright spot amidst a 1-3 start to the season.
This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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