The Indiana Pacers are two wins away from an improbable NBA Finals win, and one former Celtics wing has been an integral part of their success. Aaron Nesmith is putting together some of the best basketball of his career during the past few weeks, averaging 13.2 points and 5.8 rebounds during 20 postseason appearances while playing tenacious defense against the 68-win Thunder.
Nesmith drew an offensive foul in the second quarter of Game 4 on Friday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, which drew an anecdote from ABC play-by-play announcer Mike Breen about a conversation he had with Nesmith.
“[Nesmith] said somebody who made a huge impact on him was Joe Mazzulla,” Breen said.
“He said the guy was with me every day, he pushed me and pushed me. He made such a huge impact on him.”
Nesmith spent the first two years of his career in Boston after being taken at No. 14 overall in the 2020 NBA Draft. Mazzulla worked with Nesmith directly as an assistant during those two years when Nesmith was largely developing and mostly outside of Boston’s regular rotation.
The Celtics elected to trade Nesmith as part of a deal for Malcolm Brogdon in June 2022, just months before Mazzulla was named Celtics interim coach. Even before Nesmith’s breakout in Indiana, Mazzulla was high on the former Boston prospect, highlighting the areas where he’s thrived during his three years in Indiana.
“His shooting is getting better,” Mazzulla said back in 2022, the year after the Celtics traded Nesmith. “I think one of the things he doesn’t get enough credit for is his defense. A great individual defender. A great pick-and-roll defender. So, he’s really found a role there of being a great defender and bringing energy to the team.”
Mazzulla also credited Nesmith for how he handled a challenging situation in Boston.
“He came into a situation where he had an opportunity and it was also up and down for him and I thought he handled it with great professionalism,” Mazzulla said. “He works really hard. I thought he played hard, and I watched a lot of film of the other team, he plays really, really hard. So, I’m really excited for the situation that he’s in. He’s taken advantage of it.”
Nesmith and the Pacers will look to reclaim the series lead in the NBA Finals on Monday night as the 2–2 series shifts back to Oklahoma City for Game 5.
