Shayne Whittington was expecting this to be a virtual redshirt season. An undrafted rookie who missed Summer League play while recovering from a broken leg would be foolish to get his hopes too high.

And yet here he is, not a vital member of the Pacers, but an important role-filling forward with a promising future who's earned the right to trade verbal jabs with his teammates, and can offer some feedback to Paul George.

Speaking in front of his locker following the Pacers' 105-82 victory over New York Wednesday, Whittington was recalling his one-game journey to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the NBA's Development League when next-door neighbor Lavoy Allen interrupted.

“They don't shoot threes in your face in the D-League,” Allen said, referring to a one of the rare Knicks highlights from the game.

“I didn't miss any dunks in the D League,” Whittington shot back calmly, referring to one of Allen's lowlights from the game.

From that exchange you can gather Whittington has confidence. He also has a budding NBA skill set that could keep him in the NBA – and out of the D-League – for seasons to come. He's played 103 minutes over 19 games, averaging 2.8 points and 1.4 rebounds, hitting 45 percent from the field. Those numbers don't tell you much about his future, but he passes the eye test in games and gets passing marks for his play in practice, too.

“He's a good prospect,” coach Frank Vogel said. “Every pro sports team has a farm system, so to speak. You have to have some young guys you're developing who can become core guys for you. We feel Shayne is that. He's got all the tools. He's got great quickness and athleticism for his size, he's very, very tough, he's a great screen-setter and rebounder and he can shoot the ball from 19 feet. We're very high on him.”

The Pacers tried to take advantage of their farm system by sending Whittington to Fort Wayne for a couple of games at the end of January. He had recovered well enough from the broken leg he had suffered on May 8 during a pre-draft workout that the training staff felt comfortable enough to let him out of their sight for awhile. He played one game after parachuting into the Mad Ants on Jan. 29, scoring five points in 18 minutes off the bench.

He was set to fly out of Indianapolis with the team the next day for a game in Portland, Maine, but was called off the plane to rejoin the Pacers because Allen had injured his knee in a game against the Knicks the same evening. Ian Mahinmi sprained an ankle shortly after that, assuring Whittington's place with the varsity squad.

He'll likely not be active when everyone else is healthy, regardless of whether George comes back, but he's still getting opportunities.

“I've played a lot more than I thought I would,” he said.

Whittington serves as somewhat of a test case for players with broken legs. He was in a walking cast for a while after the injury, and then a hard cast for two months. He shed that when he joined the Pacers after signing a free agent contract the first week of July, and was brought along slowly. He played limited minutes in two preseason games, and appeared in the seventh game of the regular season.

He estimates he was virtually 100 percent by mid-season.

“I feel a little bit of pain, but that's it,” he said. “It's normal and it's not pain that affects me when I'm running up and down the court. When I'm laying in bed I have a little bit of pain, but I'll have that for the rest of my life. I'm not worried about it.”

Does that mean anything for George, who is now a full-time participant in practice and hopes to be playing again my mid-March? George has approached Whittington a few times to compare notes on his recovery process, but Whittington has no prediction for George's return.

“He's healing faster than me; way faster,” Whittington said. “I was immobilized a lot longer than he was.

“He's playing well in practice, but we'll see what happens.”

Rodney Stuckey has been impressed with George, too.

“Each day Paul's in here working his butt off,” Stuckey said. “He's just a hard worker. His mindset is to get back where he was. He's getting there, man.”

Can he get there this season?

“That's up to him,” Stuckey said. “Mentally, it's up to him. But the stuff we've been seeing with him this far has been good. You see flashes of the old PG in there. He's going to get it back because of his mindset and work ethic.”

Stuckey doesn't expect Whittington to get it back, because he hasn't gotten “it” yet, in the NBA. But he does expect Whittington will get there – there being a secure place in the NBA.

“I think he's going to be here for a while,” Stuckey said. “He's a hard-nosed guy. He can shoot the ball really well. I know a lot of people haven't seen that yet, but it's one of the strongest parts of his game. He's young. He's coming off that broken leg, but he's going to continue to grow and next summer when he's able to play Summer League he'll just continue to grow.”

Or, as Luis Scola put it: “He has all the ingredients to make a good meal, he just has to put them together and cook it.”

Whittington has seen enough already to make him equally confident about his future. From what he does in practice to what he sees in games, whether playing or sitting on the bench, he believes his comeback will lead somewhere meaningful.

“I know for a fact I can play with these guys,” he said. “I see these guys (on other teams) and in my head I think, 'I'm better than this guy. I feel like I play harder than him. I feel like I shoot better than him.' It makes me feel I can contribute pretty well in this league.”

George is probably thinking the same thing.

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