On Ben Sheppard and the art of misdirection (Patreon)

Explaining the play that has the No. 26 overall pick emerging as a surprise

By: Caitlin Cooper I @C2_Cooper 

As if the piercing sound of non-stop whistles wasn't already disorienting enough, the Pacers added to the confusion, at least for a brief moment, with a dizzying set to free up the player who currently leads the team in made threes: Ben Sheppard. On Tuesday night against the Houston Rockets, the Pacers committed 31 fouls and gave up 58 points in the paint. Just for frame of reference, the only game last season in which Indiana met or exceeded both of those benchmarks was on December 2 against the Utah Jazz. For the most part, no one could stop the ball from turning the corner, and once the ball turned the corner, no one was there as a back-stop, either. Even with the caveat that it's only preseason, the defense through these first two games has been somewhat akin to going on a boat without knowing how to swim and refusing to wear a life jacket. All too often, the Pacers get screened out of a play on one side of the pick-and-roll or the other and then because they are staying home on the perimeter, the on-ball defender ends up out to sea without a floatation device.

And, here's the thing: This is happening with T.J. McConnell and Bruce Brown both in the starting lineup -- not Tyrese Haliburton, who doesn't exactly have the same reputation for being sticky at the point of attack. Here, after Obi Toppin gives up the switch on the inverted ball screen, McConnell basically gets enveloped by a tidal wave so that Daniel Theis can stay anchored to the ball-side corner, where Alperen Sengun has shot 2-of-12 for his career.

In that regard, for a team that has repeatedly emphasized "guarding your yard," at least in words if not by action, it almost seems as though the method for battening down the hatches is to leave them in "yards" of open water to fend for themselves. Whatever the case, while there should be some question as to how that strategy will play once Haliburton is back in action, the Pacers still have to find tiny advantages in order to scrape by in the half-court without him. That's where the play for Sheppard stands out, as did he also.

It starts out basic enough. Just a pair of staggered pindown screens for Aaron Nesmith in the far corner. But Nesmith doesn't get the ball, nor does he screen for the ball. Instead, with a wave of the hand from Point Buddy, Nesmith clears out to the opposite wing.

From there, with Jock Landale in drop, it appears as though Isaiah Jackson is going to set a pick for Hield and then veer into a pindown for Nesmith. After all, that's what the Pacers did at another point in the game, when Nesmith got a downhill catch with his defender trailing and pulled up for two of his team-high 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting.

(As a side note, Nesmith made a total of 18 pull-up twos in 73 games last season. He knocked down three in this game alone. In what was mostly a ho-hum affair, he provided a few moments of "hmm, that's interesting!") Back to Sheppard, though. Based on what just happened, it appears as though that same screen is about to smash into Amen Thompson, again. Look at how the rookie guard is looking over his shoulder, anticipating the contact.

Except, as soon as that head turn happens, Nesmith makes a 45-cut -- not to the rim, but all the way to the opposite corner for an exit screen.

That serves a number of purposes, not the least of which being that it disguises who the pindown is being set for. With the 45-cut preceding the pindown, Sheppard springs up out of the corner as the surprise target, exploiting the low defender. Additionally, with Nesmith vacating to the opposite side of the floor, no one from Houston is in nearby range to help on Sheppard as the shooter. All of this in combination not only provides a means for Hield to run point while mainly dribbling in place, it also allows Jarace Walker and Isaiah Jackson to play at the same time without either player occupying the dunker's spot or moving toward the basket. In the end, even as the defense was taking on water in what was mostly a foul fest, the coordinated movement from Sheppard and Nesmith at least rocked the boat for the Rockets, offering a flashbulb moment of their respective flashes -- which, for Sheppard, also included a recovery block here and some transition passing there.

It's too early to say what the Pacers have in Sheppard as the 26th overall pick, just like it's also too early to issue a ruling on the defense; but for right now, with the Pacers setting up Sheppard with the art of misdirection, one certainly looks further along than the other.