Indiana Pacers: 2017-18 player grades for Thaddeus Young

Strengths

Thaddeus Young has made a career on the defensive end, and he is a big part of why the Pacers were ranked second in defensive rating in the postseason, only bested by the reigning champion Golden State Warriors.

During the regular season, Young’s steal output (1.7 per game) was his fourth-best individual season effort in his 10-year career.

While his 2-point field goal attempts were near a career low at 8.4 per game, he also didn’t need to shoot the ball as much in the role he is playing for Indiana. Thad, along with Darren Collison and Bojan Bogdanovic, are anchoring the Pacers’ maturity movement as they reach the midpoint of their primes.

Another big reason to like Thaddeus Young is his durability, particularly this season. While he usually is able to play almost every game, missing a handful is likely from almost any player. However, this year, Thaddeus Young literally only missed one game, and he played 32.2 minutes a night.