Pacers move up to draft Johnny Furphy in second round
The Kansas forward dropped in the draft and the Pacers jumped at the chance to add him to the roster.
The Pacers took advantage of the pool of forwards that slipped into the second round of the NBA draft by grabbing Johnny Furphy out of Kansas. The Pacers threw some cash at the Spurs to trade for the No. 35 pick, while sending their No. 36 pick point guard Juan Nunez to San Antonio.
Furphy is a skilled, 6’9 forward from Melbourne, Australia who will turn 20 in December, making him more than a year younger than Jarace Walker. Furphy played one season at Kansas, where he expanded his role in the rotation as the season progressed, shooting over 35% from 3-land and showing the ability to rebound despite the need to develop physically before being a finished product.
Plenty of work left for Furphy before he is ready to impact the Pacers, but the Pacers appear ready to commit to developing the young forward who can stretch the floor.
Obviously, Kevin Pritchard has a strong connection with everything going on at Kansas, so the Pacers surely had a strong scout on Furphy despite not bringing him in for a workout. In fact, it is easy to assume the Pacers figured Furphy would be gone by the time they picked in the second round.
With Furphy, the Pacers add much needed length to the roster, although dynamic defensive athleticsm remains a work in progress. While the pick may evoke cringy memories of TJ Leaf, this selection is nowhere near that level of risk. An early second-round pick on a young player who was projected to going in the first round is worth the swing.
The Pacers still have two picks at No. 49 and No. 50 with several ‘safer’ and older forwards remaining in the mix. Stay tuned for more on how the Pacers manage their roster through the draft on day two.