Aaron Nesmith "Art of Falling" appreciation thread

[bradjames12]

Nomad.. you literally had no idea that Hali has been the league leader in assists for practically the entire season..

The saddest part?

Before your post about your man crush now leading the league in 3 point %

You never called that out prior...

I'd feel sorry for you.. but what's the point?

[Nomad]

Blah blah bleep bleep bleep fu.

Asking a big favor here BJ.

No more posts in the thread.

I try to have patience, but nothing to say to you. If I want to post a stat in my thread that is directly relevant and somewhat needle-moving as a collector, that is my decision. It's not a Tyrese Haliburton thread. The sound of crickets chirping was welcome for three years. I had my say, compiled insights, and the posts got their reads. I predicted Indiana's ascent somewhat accurately.

Just dont read it. That is all I ask. I don't need insinuations and flak. Start your own thread. I won't read it either.

[bradjames12]

I'll call you out whenever I can...

Once again..

Hali has been leading assists per game in the NBA up to this point...

The only reason you made your last post about "top 8" league leaders was trying to get your man crush some love

It's sad really...

But I'll expect some asinine trolling response...

[Nomad]

It's actually pretty surprising to me how quickly Nesmith has ascended in visibility and rankings, actually holding a top spot in a key metric at mid-season.

Let's give Tyrese throughout the season his due. His supporters since the moment his first rookie card came out (at already unfathomable prices) have been unwavering. He is the assist and clutch 3 king. He deserves this.

But let's also watch future games with my thesis in mind: he is an equal partner with crash. Both will pull rank with any player but Myles and McConnell (that's down to respect). I think also the player thesis I presented since mid 2020 has not only been education and entertainment, but earned me the status to have this view heard respectfully. Yes, I modeled my growth arc on the BO board to Nesmith's. And you are the last stubborn remnant of trails of flames I left behind, as I gradually earned each member's respect.

While Nesmith may not have Ty's assist stats (not his role) he is the bulwark around which a suddenly respectable defense has been erected. Hence three consecutive wins after two weeks of seeming freefall. He was there in the trenches, building the structure and attitude. And he is top in 3 point percentage across the NBA. This makes the 10x price disparity with Ty puzzling to close Pacers watchers.

I remember one pretty astute member asking me why Nesmith was still in the secondary, given his breakout offensive performance in the first three games of the season, which earned him, along with Haliburton, Player of the Week nomination. The answer I had was that he was committed to building the team from the ground up and if that required earning a -82 net rating the first few months, so be it. Triage is never easy or pretty. I think that I can stand by that idea, which I did not see presented in the mainstream media, confidently at this point.

Also, the more I see Aaron the more I appreciate his unique attitude and humor. There is a freedom and thoughtfulness that is lacking in so many players these days. Pacers are like an oasis of saying what's on your mind without strict hierarchy, a collegial vibe. Sitting on the outside deck of a pizza place 3 am, disussing anyone's beliefs or favorite music. That is super rare. Why I think they are unlikely to trade even one component of their current team. If they need another big, heck, they have Jarace Walker coming up. They are not getting OG and who else is there at this point?

[Nomad]

Just going through and pulling out some random, but key entries, in case I wind up turning this into a book. Assume that if you are on this thread, know what to expect.

07-07-2022, 01:36 AM

Originally Posted by Nomad

Offseason time filler, but I have been thinking through the full impact of the Nesmith - Brogdon trade. It boosted his potential a lot, because there never was going to be room on the Celtics, esp after making Finals, for him to develop as a starter. Fans would be clamoring for the type of imported veteran talent that the Celtics now can attract and have the green light to go after. The trade was a gift from Brad, with probably Haliburton selecting him as a good match for a young team that will bank heavily on energy, as well as finesse. If they just play a good season, developing as a squad, and don't make it to playoffs, it will be considered a win by Indiana fans at this point. (and with Theis anchoring the bench, who knows?)

On the other hand, there is some hope that Aaron mastered the lessons that Smart, Brown, Tatum, Pritch, and Timelord dished on a nightly basis. Some suspect that the reason the deal went through is because Nesmith has performed at defensive All-NBA level in flashes.

One of maybe a dozen games where he was given minutes, Nesmith helped engineer a 32 point comeback. I just went back and watched the game (April 30th, 2021) against the Spurs, that got me following the Celtics and collecting a particular player. You can see the energy element as in Game 1 against the heat with about 5 minutes left in the third.

From that pivotal point he makes every possible play to help his team and, once finding the rhythm as a playmaker, delivers on offense as well. Tatum doesn't score above 50 and the Celtics lose without the spark crash provided. I don't think that even Haliburton has had such a defining moment, though with empty stands it went relatively unremarked.

That was also a game that shows the sheer energy and team determination of the Celtics, long before they climbed the mountain. As it relates to the present, it is a reason why the trade was not as uneven as some have claimed.

Seeing this, I am reminded a little of Math being demoted to the secondary and probably feeling like he has been capped. But it's only his second year, he learned how to fearlessly attack the basket before learning techniques of actually putting it in the basket. Two years into Nesmith's career, he was still essentially considered Brown's ex-sparring partner.

[bradjames12]

You replied to your own post...

[Nomad]

Sorry, just working on putting together a quick book of first person postings. New thoughts on old takes, as they relate to my expanded understanding of NBA team dynamics.

If it's to be my first published work, it should be something random. Still unwilling to be a complete sellout.

Go write something worthy yourself instead of being a forum etiquette instructor. And, oh yeah, my thread my rules.

[bradjames12]

Originally Posted by Nomad

Sorry, just working on putting together a quick book of first person postings. New thoughts on old takes, as they relate to my expanded understanding of NBA team dynamics.

If it's to be my first published work, it should be something random. Still unwilling to be a complete sellout.

Go write something worthy yourself instead of being a forum etiquette instructor. And, oh yeah, my thread my rules.

You dominant your own thread..

Congrats???

[Nomad]

You dominant lame attempts to cap. wtf really

[bradjames12]

Originally Posted by Nomad

You dominant lame attempts to cap. wtf really

Lame is having 160 replies on the thread you started about a guy that has zero hobby value outside of this very thread...

[Nomad]

Let those who want to read my stuff, read it man. Just let me have the last word on my thread and leave it.

I am given some leeway by the collecting community to post on Nesmith here 1) because I have one of the highest value collections of Nesmith 2) crash continues to outperform and gain recognition in the sport 3) I'm a decent writer with insightful takes you don't find on the mainstream.

If you Google something like 'Nesmith key cards' this thread will appear, because there is no other information.

I say let the general public determine hobby value, not the other way around. If that's still possible, my investment piece has a chance. Cause we all know that value shoots up after a defining performance in a playoff series. I think, IST demonstrated so that even the average fan can understand, he may be given that opportunity. Basketball, after all, is more than a vibe.

[bradjames12]

Originally Posted by Nomad

Let those who want to read my stuff, read it man. Just let me have the last word on my thread and leave it.

No

Literally nobody else than you wants to do that

[bradjames12]

Can't take constructive criticism I see

[Nomad]

Celtics fan posted this on the official Milwaukee Bucks subreddit

[Nomad]

I think this is a really interesting time to be a Nesmith collector actually. He is one of the de facto leaders of the Pacers and, in my mind, way more interesting than Malthurin, who is likely to burn out. The fact that trolls emerged basically mean that people know who he is. While he was dismissed as a scrub, I could get away with long philosophical posts on basketball and the meaning of life. Now we have these typical basketball adrenalin junkies and haters emerging, because he good.

So am I gonna shut down the thread just because I get flak that makes it unpleasant to write and makes the forum a little uncomfortable, if I may be honest? Nah. Give them time and these people will also respect that this is a thread that some people read and enjoy.

After Ty went out and the Pacers were down 11, many fans had written off the season. They remembered how bad the Nesmith Nembhard Myles Buddy starting unit was when Ty was out around the same time last season. But I was like, nah. Ty is just a good player on a great team. Sure enough Nesmith countered with a couple quick threes that brought Pacers and crowd right back into the game, and McConnell started to pest, and from that moment on they were energized. Math caught fire to the point where Jalen Smith made a Kobe comparison in the postgame interview. The last five minutes of the game were a clinic in how not to let the Celtics beat you.

I think actually Nesmith has not simply gotten revenge on Boston through his play, but he taught the Pacers exactly which tendencies to go up against and how to defeat them. He was an excellent student, as it turned out, to the point where Garden Talk says the Pacers are exactly who Boston doesn't want to face in the playoffs. I wondered myself if the win over Boston in the IST quarters was an anomaly, but now we can definitely say it wasn't.

Carlisle taught the entire team to buy into the Indy defensive strategy, which actually leaves a lot of rim open and relies on hunt down speed. You can tell Nesmith and Math work together A LOT, given the way Benny's defense has evolved. I think Smith now is exceptional in swatting down close range attempts, that's prolly some Myles tutoring. So yeah it was not exactly a surprise to see how resilient the Pacers are.

Pacers fans should not focus on Haliburton as their investment vehicle. He hasn't really bulked up much and probably won't at this point in his career. And the result was a really ungainly slip, but he has had a number of issues since opposing teams started giving him really stout interior defense.

Remember Hali was the starter through both the 6 of 7 game losing streak after IST and the current 7 of 8 game win streak that commenced when Nesmith and Smith moved to their current starting roles.

As that fantasy guy who still says Neismith put it, Double A is one of only four players to have knocked down at least 68 3s this season while recording 37 steals and 24 blocks. The other 3 being Derrick White, James Harden, and Scottie Barnes.

I think we can say by now that the two players front and center of the new look Pacers are the ones who introduced the postgame presser. I look at the Pacers to stay in the hunt and not fall off too far over the next 6 weeks, or however long it takes to get Haliburton back, particularly if Jarace Walker can begin to add quality minutes.

Oh and that supposed foul of Hield on Brown? He did hit him upside the head, but he got ball first.

[Nomad]

So now Pacers to play against Denver. Scoring will be no issue, but defense against the big J will be a challenge in the mile high.

I wonder if Nesmith will be called to defend Jokic (or that's why they are starting Nembhard, stupid). I do think that defense has improved across the board to a point where multiple players of length could switch off. Bruce Brown's strategizing services are in high demand, I am sure.

The Pacers' blowout win against Hawks just showcased what having a good secondary will do. Nesmith has played in the trenches with both units, as has Nembhard and now Math. Since Math isn't in the trade discussion for Siakem, I wonder if they are showcasing Nembhard? He's not playing great but wrist injury still healing. In that context the starting role certainly makes sense and anyway, they need either Math or Nesmith in the secondary to anchor McC. Who would they package with Drew? Not Toppen or Smith certainly, they want more bigs, not less, and are not letting Math enter the discussion... Hield? Nwora?

[Nomad]

Hot takes: I can say the Pacers not much fun to watch with Math starting in sir kneesmith's stead. They were able to keep winning fine with Ty gone but grit, intelligence, and battle-hardened experience is difficult to come by. Just as Raptors can probably win with about anyone but Scottie Barnes missing.

That said, back to back against red hot Utah (unstoppable Mrrkannen and Sexton) after Denver was rough. And Denver they almost pulled off, until the unstoppable Jokic kept planting himself in the pain, Pacers panting their way back and failing to guard the high-el yard.

I think that the break for Nesmith was one they could afford. After beating the Hawks and of course the landmark victory against Boston down 11 at half, when Ty went out (Nesmith got em together at the half and said, let's keep our foot on the gas pedal), the mindset was 'we can definitely take out the Blazers and that will set us up with a reasonable record above .500 when Ty gets back.' That is my hope at least, I saw crash play through a couple ankle-twist-borderline-sprains in recent games. But if it is indeed shins, they should already be healing. Granted, Indy was expected to fail against the two current titans of the west, but it's still indicative to see winning end and latter-stage defense in particular fail when Nesmith is out.

Interesting to see Packman do a 20-21 theme break and reevaluation of that year's draft. Wiseman may be trash but he still automatically goes in the hits pile. I remember packman hitting so much Wiseman bling that year it was ride. Nesmith only goes in the hits when silver or better. But he did name check him once or twice, "You basically want to hit Ant, Mello, Ty, Maxey, and, maybe Vaseel... and... uh... Neismith?" To be fair, he did not hype up Bane any more than he usually does and he basically forgot Quickley. Toppen got a quick shoutout as a current teammate of Ty's.

Silver lining of the Jazz game, Jarace Walker played minutes and basically impressed. He is a big man with good instincts and good hands, as they say. And has worked a lot to improve his 3.

[Nomad]

Tony East puts a lot of this stuff into coherent analytic words with his Nesmith thesis, which goes on for about 10 minutes from 21:00. One of the smartest analysts in the NBA, so I listen.

[Nomad]

Just had the Siakem trade explained in full and how it relates to Turner's, Brown's, and Nesmith's contracts. The organization is run by geniuses.

[bradjames12]

Figured you would make that trade about your man crush..

The trolling is rather impressive

[Nomad]

I've not been at all impressed with your posts, except the one where you read the stat lines on a Pacers game and pointed out assists. That was something.

[duron]

Originally Posted by Nomad

I've not been at all impressed with your posts, except the one where you read the stat lines on a Pacers game and pointed out assists. That was something.

[bradjames12]

Nomad...

My posts are to put it mildly infinitely better than yours considering everyone else within this thread that you started about your man crush let alone the NBA thread wishes you would never post gains

[Nomad]

[bradjames12]

Post a rebuttal to my last post..

Please.....