2019 NBA Draft: Full Mock Draft 4.0, Atlanta Hawks Trade Down to Pick at 8, 14 & 22, Lakers Trade #4

The Indiana Pacers will be looking to wash away the bad taste a four-game sweep at the hands of the Boston Celtics left in the team’s collective mouth during the 2019 postseason.

Of course, the team’s main offensive engine – Victor Oladipo – suffered a gruesome injury in the regular season that kept him out of his teammate’s postseason efforts. Oladipo was coming off of a breakout season in 2017-18 in which he almost led his Pacers to an upset of LeBron James and the Cavaliers in the 2018 postseason.

Now, with Darren Collison likely gone in free agency, the Pacers could use some help in the backcourt. Enter Nickeil Alexander-Walker out of Virginia Tech. The cousin of Second Team All-Rookie member Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, NAW was terrific in his sophomore season – showcasing an interesting all-around skill set that would benefit any team that drafts him.

For the Pacers, NAW could provide some secondary ballhandling, as his usage rate (26.5%) and assist rate (24.6%) shot up in his second season, per Sports Reference. That assist rate is especially notable, as it represents nearly double his freshman season’s assist rate.

Furthermore, Alexander-Walker possesses a solid jumper (37.4 percent from deep in his sophomore year) combined with excellent defensive chops (3.4 percent steal rate was Top 70 in the country), which means that the Pacers’ culture of lockdown defense would be unaffected with the inclusion of a rangy swingman like NAW.