Indiana Pacers: 5 reasons T.J. Leaf was a good pick
5. Passing ability
T.J. Leaf has a variety of things to offer as a basketball player, and one of those is his ability to facilitate from the power forward spot.
Leaf has good court vision for a 6’10” player, and he has shown a willingness to pass the ball to open teammates when he doesn’t have a good shot available.
His assist totals weren’t extremely high last season, but part of that can be attributed to Lonzo Ball having the ball in his hands much of the time and dishing out 7.6 dimes per contest for the Bruins.
When T.J. Leaf had the opportunity to pass out of the high post or off the drive, he was very effective at moving the ball and setting up teammates for good looks.
Leaf may not be a big scorer in the NBA right away, so his passing skills are not to be overlooked when evaluating his potential contributions to the Pacers in the early part of his pro career.
Young players who can see the floor and make solid passes are not easy to find — young big men who have those skills are even more rare.