Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle applauded rookie Andrew Nembhard (31st pick) after hitting the game winner vs. the Los Angeles Lakers last night in a 116-115 road victory.

(via Bally Sports Indiana):

On Nembhard’s game winner:

“Tyrese [Haliburton] did a great job. Myles [Turner] got a great look. Ball kicked around. And we found a guy that had fresh legs tonight, who played a terrific game, who hit the game winner.”

Discusses Nembhard’s maturity on both ends/says he should’ve been drafted higher:

“He’s been a solid player on both ends all year for us. He’s one of our better defenders. Nobody is gonna stop LeBron James, but Andrew just has a good feel for making it difficult on good players. And he’s guarded some great players like LeBron. He’s guarded a couple of the Brooklyn guys. You guard superstar players as a rookie, you gotta have some real moxie to be able to do it and not just get called for foul after foul. He’s shown some real veteran wherewithal, wisdom beyond his years. He’s not afraid, man. Kevin [Pritchard] and his staff really nailed it on him because he’ll go down as a top 12 or 15 pick in this draft when it’s all said and done. That’s where he will have, should have been taken.”