The Seven Best NBA Non-Pacer Players I Saw Live This Season
A reflection on my favorite visiting guys I saw at Gainbridge Fieldhouse this year
Victor Wembanyama (11/6/23) - It was the 7th game of his career, and his team gave up 152 points, so it wasn’t his best showing, finishing with 13 pts (3-12 FG), 10 rebs, and 0 asts. Still, it was a marvel to see a man of that length move with such fluidity. I definitely saw glimpses—a “how did he dunk that?” here, a silky pull-up there—that led to the Wemby we are seeing put up mind-boggling stat lines now.
Paolo Banchero (11/19/23) - Getting to see the two previous number one picks back-to-back felt pretty cool. Banchero certainly looked the part, muscling his way to 24 pts in 27 minutes (and a W). The dude has a deadly combo of physical gifts-strong as hell, light on his feet-and skill—variety of shots, decent dribbler/passer already. He’s gonna be in the All-Star conversation for the next decade.
Jalen Brunson (12/30/23) - Don’t tell Reggie Miller, but the Knicks are my favorite East team besides the Pacers, and Brunson is largely the reason why (oh and that beaut Josh Hart). I’ve always loved the feisty little guys, having grown up in the Iverson era. This wasn’t Brunson’s most effective game (9/22 FG in an L), but he has a nastiness to him that makes every lead feel unsafe as an opposing fan.
Nikola Jokic (1/23/24) - This season was the second straight year I got to see Jokic in person. As we had the halftime lead, I made the crucial mistake of saying something about how we are keeping Jokic in check. Fast-forward and we lose to the tune of Jokic’s 31/13/10 triple-double. It’s pretty clear anytime you watch him, but especially live, it becomes obvious that this man is the best basketball player in the world.
Steph Curry (2/8/24) - Beloved B and I had never seen Steph live before, and we weren’t quite ready for the Swifty-level of pandemonium in our own arena. Curry jerseys outnumbered all Pacers jerseys 3-to-1, and he brought the goods. It had a real Steph vs Everybody vibe, with him hitting I believe all 7 of his first threes (11-16 overall, for 42 points). Because of this legend, the game was never really close. Cue a 10 year-old throwing up three fingers.
Demar Derozan (3/13/24) - What a heart-breaker this game turned out to be, Derozan tying the game on a last second shot before dominating OT to deliver the Pacers the loss. I think this is the game I introduced Beloved B to the term “professional scorer,” as Derozan’s 46 felt like 66. It’s like having the wind knocked out of you, except it’s your heart.
Oklahoma City Thunder as a whole (4/5/24) - As a basketball fan, I was bummed that the Thunder, who are my favorite West team, were without their two best guys—SGA and J-Dub. As a Pacers fan, I was okay with that, haha. Still, this team showed its tenacity and depth—Dort bothering Hali on the ball (and leading the team in scoring!), Chet being so lengthy on both ends of the court around the rim, Giddey handling the playmaking duties, and K. Williams dropping 18 off the bench on 7/7 shooting. With those two guys back, even as a young team, the Thunder are gonna be a tough out in the playoffs.