Bennedict Mathurin finished the regular season with 20 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and one block on Sunday, but the night also sharpened the scrutiny around Indiana's decision to send him to the Los Angeles Clippers for Ivica Zubac.
Mathurin shot 7-for-17 in the Clippers' 115-110 victory against the Golden State Warriors, a final line that stood out because it came after a rocky stretch. In his last 10 games before Sunday's finale, he averaged 13 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, one steal and two turnovers while shooting 41% from the field and 21.1% from deep. He also had four games with fewer than 10 points in that span, including a scoreless five-minute outing against the Portland Trail Blazers on April 10.
The uneven finish matters because Indiana has already made its choice. The Pacers decided not to sign Mathurin to a new deal this coming summer and instead moved him in the trade for Zubac, betting that the deal would reshape the roster more than it would hinge on one scorer's ceiling. Mathurin's time with Indiana never settled into a clean upward line. He had strong stretches, but he also missed nearly a month with the Pacers because of a toe injury, then missed four games with the Clippers for the same reason.
That stop-start year is why the latest discussion has turned to value rather than just production. On The Bill Simmons Podcast, Zach Lowe said Mathurin's play has not only hurt the trade but may have also hurt his value. Sunday's game gave the Clippers a more complete version of what Mathurin can look like when he is engaged and finishing possessions, but it did not erase the larger issue: the season ended with a promising talent still searching for the consistency that makes a trade look smart after the fact.
