Pacers Notes: Mathurin, McDermott, Hield, Smith

Pacers second-year guard Bennedict Mathurin is set to miss at least the next three games, and probably a fourth, as he deals with a sprained right shoulder, according to IndyStar’s Dustin Dopirak.

Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said Mathurin will be reevaluated after Indiana’s upcoming two-game road trip that concludes March 12 in Oklahoma City. That reevaluation will come before the Pacers play the second half of a back-to-back against the Bulls on March 13, so it’s unlikely he plays in that game, according to Dopirak.

“We hope it’s not serious,” Carlisle said. “He’s a guy who bounces back very quickly and hates missing game. We hope that it’s relatively short term, but he will miss a week at least.”

Mathurin is averaging 14.5 points per game in his second year in the league.

We have more notes on the Pacers:

• There’s still no return timetable for Doug McDermott, who is dealing with a right calf strain. According to Dopirak, as of Saturday, McDermott hadn’t engaged in any on-floor work since suffering his injury on Feb. 26. He’s averaging 5.7 points and shooting 41.5% from three this season.
• Buddy Hield recently opened up about his trade from the Pacers, explaining how he didn’t see a future with the organization. “I love Buddy. I wish we could have kept him. The whole organization wishes they could have kept him,” Carlisle said in response to Hield’s comments (Twitter links via Dopirak). “And we could have, but it would have been self-serving for the organization. … He’s one of a kind. I loved him. I loved working with him for two years. He was a total pro with everything with he did.”
• Jalen Smith is knocking down a career-high 61.2% of his field goals and 44.3% of his three-point attempts. According to Smith, the key to his better shooting is to stop thinking about knocking them down, Dopirak writes in another story. “I guess it’s just an ‘F-it’ mentality,” Smith said. “I’m pretty much saying if it goes in, it goes in. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t.” Smith is playing just 17.7 minutes per night in a crowded frontcourt, but has been highly efficient in his limited time and is averaging 20.9 points and 11.3 rebounds per 36 minutes.