2019 NBA Draft: Full Mock Draft 3.0, Atlanta Hawks Pick #8 & #10 After Lottery
By Chris Guest
#18. Indiana Pacers — Nassir Little
Nassir Little out of the University of North Carolina is another player that underwhelmed after coming in with titanic hype after shredding through his high school competition.
Little’s amazing physical traits were recently outlined here by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony:
North Carolina's Nassir Little official measurements at the NBA Combine: 6'6 with shoes, 7'1 1/4 wingspan, 8'8 1/2 standing reach, 224 pounds, 5.9% body fat.
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 15, 2019
Those certainly look the part of an NBA player, and Sam Vecenie of The Athletic recently reported that Little is already in better shape this offseason than he was while playing with the Tar Heels.
Little has a tremendous motor, and his physical gifts could often be seen during his tenure in college. Though there are surely questions about his jump shot and ballhandling skills, Little should be able to immediately come in and impact the game on the defensive end – which is likely all that the Indiana Pacers will ask of him.
The Pacers had the 4th-best offense in the NBA last season, per Cleaning the Glass, and Little will likely be able to make an impact on that end immediately – solely with his physical attributes and intensity.
Beyond that, scooping up a high-upside player this low in the draft means that the Pacers’ young core is extremely interesting what with Little, Aaron Holiday and one or both of Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner.