Kam Jones leads the pack of aspiring young players hoping to land a spot with the Indiana Pacers as the Marquette Golden Eagles’ former star gets named in the team’s Summer League squad.
The 23-year-old rookie was selected 38th overall in the draft via the San Antonio Spurs and landed with the Pacers where analysts thinks he can thrive.
The team will be without Tyrese Haliburton for most of the 2025-26 season and they will need a point guard reliever while waiting for him.
Indiana may have lost Myles Turner in the free agency, a move that got them F grades from critics but at least they got an A for drafting Jones.
ESPN’s Kevin Pelton gave the Pacers an A for drafting the Golden Eagles alum suggesting that it is a direct answer to what they really need.
He wrote:
The Pacers have made one of my favorite second-round picks two years in a row. Unlike 2024 second-rounder Johnny Furphy, who played sparingly as a rookie at age 20, the 23-year-old Jones has more potential to contribute immediately. Indiana could use the guard help with Tyrese Haliburton sidelined after his heartbreaking Achilles rupture during Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
Kam Jones get JJ Barea comparison
Jones already has the credentials through his last season with Marquette where analysts and his own coach Shaka Smart saw how he improved in many facets of the game.
What’s left for him is to prove himself on the court. Even analysts think he has the potential and got compared to an NBA champion whose career spanned eight years/
Ben Pfeiffer is comparing him to undersized point guard JJ Barea for his ability to impact the game through a diverse scoring arsenal.
here’s my quick scouting report of kam jones, who i absolutely love for indiana at 38 as a future rotation guard who does a bit of everything: pic.twitter.com/MAdnL5O7IO
— ben pfeifer (@bjpf_) June 27, 2025
But like Barea, his size might be an issue.
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