NBA Breakout Candidates: Andrew Nembhard, Ben Mathurin & Alex Sarr

NBA Breakout Candidates: Andrew Nembhard, Ben Mathurin & Alex Sarr

Is there a player in particular that you looking at and you’re like, man, this guy is primed to make a leap next season? First name that comes to mind, Andrew Nemhard. With Tyrese Hallebertton out for the rest of the season, more than likely the rest of next season. Um, Nemhard is probably going to be the guy that’s going to be the the engine of the offense. They’re going to play through Pascal Seakum, too, but I think we’re going to see that big leap in Andrew Nehart. It’s going to be a very important year for him. He’s going to become rookie extension eligible. Not only that, I mean, if you look at the numbers with him, with Tyresese Allebertton off the floor, his usage rate goes up by 8% to like around 22. We could see that jump to 25, maybe 28. And then he’s averaging 14 points with seven assists without Hallebertton on the floor throughout his career. So, I think that that’s the person that I’m kind of pegging right now. Most improved player, taking that leap to kind of keep Indiana, I would say, on the on the on the brink of relevancy in the East. like they’re not going to be what they were last year, but they’re still obviously going to be a playoff team cuz their team is still super deep. It It’s an interesting thing when you look at a guy like Nimhart, when you look at the Patriots as a whole, like we’re so easily writing them off, right? And I won’t say write them off at your own peril, but when you lose Miles Turner and then you lose Tyrese Hallebertton for the whole season, that changes the trajectory of everything that you do in the offseason. They’re going to lean a lot on Pascal Seakum. they’re going to lean a lot on, like you said, maybe Ben Matan is a guy that I think of and I’m like, that’s a guy that I’m looking at and I’m saying he is super talented, super gifted, really honory, and I say that with all of the affection as far as being like super competitive. He gets under the guy’s skin. You got to see when he had a game, when he when he has a game, it lifts the paces. now is going to be he’s going to be in a spot where he can’t just afford to have a game. He’s got to bring those games every night just to keep things competitive. And I I think I’m with you. I I look at Nhard because he’s a point guard essentially. He just plays a lot more off the ball when Hallebertton is there. But Hallebertton is not a ball dominant point guard. So it’s almost like you have two point guards in your back court. Anyway, I like Nimhart. I like the toughness. remember he was the guy who was guarding Shay Gilis Alexander in game one and forced that miss which opened the door to Tyrese Hallebertton hitting the game winner. So is it do you look at him as saying numbers or you look at him as saying like effect as far as how he’s going to perform next year? I I think it’s a combination of both because if you go back I mean even last year’s playoff run he was instrumental in that in the Pacers getting to uh how far they went last year. So, you couple that with the the next year he just came back and did the exact same thing. Um, this confidence in his midi, he can playmate. To your point, he was playing a lot off ball, but I think we’re going to see so much more attention to him because he’s going to be getting that more those more minutes. And TJ McConnell will obviously still play a role and and and have his his impact off the bench. But, you know, I think Rick Carlile and the Pacers have done a really good job of building a team that not only has the chemistry, but then they’re also putting them in positions to be successful. And I think the way that they brought along Andrew Nehard, he’s going to be ready for this uptick in usage and opportunity that he probably wasn’t afford before. Like, yeah, he’s he was starting, but when you have Tyrese Hallebert on the floor, it’s just a kind of a different uh it’s a different it’s a different system. So, um I’m really curious to see what he’s going to be bringing uh this year coming up. Yeah, Ben Matan is is one of my guys. Like, I know it’s not like the sexiest name. Nobody’s coming to hear hear about the Indiana Pacers and what guys they got sleeping, you know what I mean, as a sleeper, but I I think he’s someone that warrants a lot of consideration here for the very reasons I listed earlier. And yeah, the things changed when he went to the bench, but that was the dynamic of last year’s team, right? He did not he came off the bench during the second half of of last year. his numbers dipped a little bit in the playoffs because that’s just what happens sometimes when Rick Carl becomes heavily more dependent on vets and you can’t afford to have a young player get in foul trouble in some of those situations some bad matchups along the way but he’s going to have the runway I think when you look at him when you look at Nmith you’re going to have guys who have the runway to play to be able to afford to make mistakes and not necessarily that it’s a low pressure situation because I don’t want to say it’s that it’s not a low pressure situation But it’s a situation where you don’t have to look over your shoulder when you have two or three bad plays in a row or you have a turnover and a missed shot. Usually that that could be the time for Carlile to pull you out. Now you can see Ben Matan as a you know as a ball handler in the pick and roll. You can see him playing with you know Pascal Seakum and seeing if you know their chemistry can develop just with more usage and more opportunity to play. So Ben Matan is a guy for me. Like there’s another guy, but Ben Matan is a guy for me. Is do do you have somebody else or is that just your one? Yeah, I was thinking also Assar Thompson. I mean Amen Thompson I think is already kind of arrived here and the Houston Rockets are already second. I mean they’re second odds on favorite to win the Western Conference. Yes. Uh I I think his breakout was already there, but I think the Assar leap is what’s really going to propel the Detroit Pistons to be are they going to be a you know a six seed? Are they going to be like a three? You’re stealing the next segment. Just tell me you’re still in the next segment. Go ahead. Go ahead. Go ahead. Just tell me you’re still in the next seg. But I had I had I had to show love to cuz the thing about Assar, I think he’s been kind of overlooked because he dealt with the blood clot the blood clot injury and he kind of came on mid-season. Obviously, there was some change not only in the front office but with the player personnel with Tobias Harris coming in there. With Detroit not doing too much in making a big splash in the offseason. you know, they brought in Duncan Robinson, they brought in Caris Levert, I don’t know that that’s going to stunt the growth of Assar Thompson. So, if you’re looking at a two-way player that can be take this next level leap, this is the year that I think we’re going to see Assar Thompson kind of be more closer to what we saw of Amen last year. Um, I think his shots going to be better. Not going to be great, but it’s going to be improved. He can playmake. He can get out in in space, create in transition, and he’s just a menace on defense. So that’s that’s the guy that I’m really keen in on Detroit that I think could be that X factor for them to go to that next level if they’re going to take it there. So y’all this is what happens when you know sometimes you don’t completely prep together on stuff because you know somebody may have some microphone difficulties and things of that nature so you can’t get into I have no idea what you’re talking about. Yeah. Yeah. Completely. We’re going to talk about Assar Thompson later. We’re going to dig a little deeper into Assar Thompson later because we’re going to talk about that particular team. A guy that I’m thinking about and I agree everything you said about Assar Thompson. I think he’s going to be in the most improved category if not a bunch of other categories that we select teams on. What do you think about Alex Sar in Washington? Second year. I know is Washington. Nobody pays attention to them because they’re the Wizards and now they’re trying to be Oklahoma City like west east southeast, right? That’s that’s where the Wizards play. I’m always curious about first year players going into their second year. And a big thing for me is first year player going into second year. How did you perform in the second half all-star break of your first year? Now, he still got to put on weight. You got to make sure he’s playing in the absolute right position, optimal situation. But with OK with See, I keep calling them Oklahoma City, but they’re Washington. They keep doing things that’s Oklahoma City. Yeah. Yeah. We’re going to take on going to take on players and get picks. We’re going to take on vets and try to establish a culture. That’s why you wind up getting, you know, that’s why you wind up getting uh Chris Middleton over there. You know what I mean? Like that’s that’s Yeah. CJ McCullum. Now with that with that big, you know, $50 million price tag, you’re going to have vets that, if nothing else, show you how to play and are going to be invested in your success because their money is already set. They’re not going to be playing for, you know, the next big money contract, so to speak. Alex R, just because of his physical makeup, I want to see him put on some weight. I want to see him have some better, you know, shot selection. Sometimes he had trouble with not necessarily lymph but girth around the rim like bigger guys seem to affect him a little bit. Usually guys that are that young, you know what I mean, Dan? Guys who are that young and they’re coming into the league and they’re foreign, it takes them a year or two to really get it. Maybe maybe I’m jumping on it a year early and usually that’s what I’ve been I’ve been the guy throughout my career that is I’ll jump on you a year early. I’ll give you the most improved tag a year before you maybe really quote unquote deserve it. But I’d rather be that guy than saying, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. I saw it all along, but I wasn’t going to say, “No, I’m calling my shot.” No, I think this kid is going to be good. Yeah. I mean, so he was one of the players that I was really curious to watch at summer league and, you know, he broke the summer league record for most blocks in a game with eight. Um, but I think it was his shot selection that to me looked a bit improved. It looked more tactical, more more thought out. It wasn’t just coming down the court and chucking. Now granted, the Washington Wizards coming off having Jordan P and Kyle Kosma, their system was of this chucking variety. So like walking into that situation probably wasn’t best for him to kind of read the game and make those decisions. Now that we’re kind of they’re reshaping the roster akin to, you know, the Oklahoma City Thunder, I think we should see a a leap in in Alexar. Um I’m encourage like defensively I think he’s fine, right? It’s the offensive game where I’m like curious like where is he? He’s kind of a He doesn’t really bang in the post enough. So like is he more of like a shooter? Is he going to be popping out for three, taking those mid-range um you know at at the at the nail kind of shots there in the midi? I think he could take the leap, but I think the Washington Wizards are a team like if we’re looking not to foreshadow, but if we’re looking for a team to make the the biggest improvement in terms of record from the previous year, I think they’re they’re going to be in that conversation because I think they’re going to be better than a lot of people think. Um, it’s hard to be it’s hard it’s hard to be worse. It’s hard to be worse than people thought. It’s hard to be worse. Yeah. So, I mean, it’s not going to be an all-star leap. It’s not going to be, but he could be a most improved conversation if we lock it cuz like their front court isn’t that intimidating for him not to make um an impact in in this in his third year. So, um yeah, I I like the call. I think it’s a bit early, but I could see it happening if the Wizards improve and it’s going to be off the strength of him and obviously Bal Koulabali taking a big leap. Um and we’ll see how Trey Johnson kind of fits in there as their their their primary bucket getter. You don’t have to agree, but you have to click subscribe. Debate lives here. Yahoo Sports is where the conversation starts. Bring your takes to the comments.

Who’s ready to break out in 2025? Vincent Goodwill and Dan Titus highlight the young NBA players they believe are primed for a leap next season — including Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, and Alex Sarr.

With Tyrese Haliburton likely out and Indiana shifting gears, is Nembhard about to take over? Can Mathurin become a nightly force? And will Alex Sarr help turn Washington into the “Oklahoma City of the East”?

Drop your picks for most improved player in the comments. 👇

00:00 – Who’s primed to make a leap in 2025?
01:00 – Bennedict Mathurin’s growth potential
02:30 – Nembhard’s expanded role without Haliburton
05:00 – Dan’s surprise pick: Ausar Thompson in Detroit
06:57 – Vincent throws in Alex Sarr from the Wizards

Thanks for watching! Subscribe to the Yahoo Sports channel here ► http://bit.ly/YSportsYT

🚨 Subscribe to Yahoo Sports’ NEW Fantasy Football Channel 🚨
http://bit.ly/4kMNRee

Follow us everywhere!
Our Site ► http://www.yahoosports.com
Instagram ► http://www.instagram.com/yahoosports
TikTok ► https://www.tiktok.com/@yahoosports
Snapchat ► https://www.snapchat.com/add/yahoosports
Twitter ► http://www.twitter.com/yahoosports
Facebook ► http://www.facebook.com/yahoosports