3 takeaways: Robert Baker makes case for Boom; RayJ Dennis, Enrique Freeman finish strong summer

Indianapolis Star

19-07-2025

Forward Robert Baker scored 26 points and posted 10 rebounds to lead the Pacers to a 113-104 win against their Pelicans in their fifth and final game in the NBA Summer League this season.
The Pacers finished Summer League play 3-2. The Pelicans finished 0-5.
Forward Phillip Wheeler added 19 points for the Pacers. Point guard RayJ Dennis posted 15 points and 11 assists. Forward Enrique Freeman had 14 points and 10 rebounds and guard Keisei Tominaga had 12 points.
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Here are three key takeaways.
Robert Baker has been bouncing back and forth between the G League and international basketball since graduating from Harvard as a 4.5 points-per-game career scorer in 2020. There's obviously not space for him with the Pacers as all 15 standard contracts appear to be spoken for and there are four players battling for the three two-way contracts. However, the multi-talented 6-10 forward made a case he deserves to be on a professional roster somewhere for the 2025-26 season, and the Noblesville Boom would seemingly be lucky to have him.
Baker took advantage of the opportunities in Game 5 of the Summer League and scored his 26 points on 11-of-18 shooting, including 4-of-10 behind the arc. He's been a willing shooter throughout the event, hitting 2-of-7 3s in his first three games, but this time he found a rhythm and stuck with it.
His other seven field goals all game in the paint, and he showed he could finish at the rim with either hand and showed good touch in the mid-paint area. He hit a wild turnaround jumper right before the buzzer in the third quarter and got a friendly roll to make it happen.
Baker also made a difference on the glass with his 10 rebounds including nine on the defensive end. He added three assists, two steals and two blocks and showed good awareness as a pick-and-roll defender as well, showing a capacity to switch and keep ball-handlers in front of him. In 25 minutes and 38 seconds off the bench, Baker posted a +15 plus-minus rating.
RayJ Dennis sat out Thursday's game against the Knicks, but the Pacers apparently decided they wanted to see him play in another game at the point and he got an even more extended look with guards Kam Jones, Taelon Peter and Quenton Jackson all sitting out as well as wing Johnny Furphy.
Dennis continued to show command of the Pacers' offense, keeping the ball popping as he did in the Pacers first and third games in Summer League. Whipping passes with either hand, he dished out 11 assists against just three turnovers as the Pacers posted 29 total assists on 42 field goals against 11 turnovers. He scored his 15 points on 5-of-10 shooting including 3-of-7 from 3-point range with those 3s coming from serious distance with one of them coming from just inside the logo. The former Baylor point guard is apparently a safe bet to maintain the two-way contract he got last season and he's done enough in the Summer League to make the case he can be trusted to run the offense in at least limited minutes for the Pacers as they navigate the 2025-26 season without injured Tyrese Haliburton.
Meanwhile Enrique Freeman continues to make the best case he can to hang on to his two-way spot as he finished Summer League with four straight double-doubles. He scored his 14 points on 7-of-8 shooting with all of his buckets coming in the restricted area. He grabbed 10 rebounds with three on offense and added an assist, a steal and two blocks. He finishes the Summer League with 16.6 points and 9.6 rebounds per game and he shot 72.5% from the floor.
Like Baker, Phillip Wheeler made a case for a job during his time with the Pacers and there might be a place for him on the Boom. The 6-8 wing with four years of G League work under his belt at age 23 scored 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting. He hit 1-of-2 3-pointers and also knocked down all six of his free throws. He draws a lot of those because of how hard he goes at the rim.
Wheeler was relentless on the dribble drive throughout the Summer League. He started all five games and averaged 13.2 points per game, shooting 52.9% from the floor and knocking down 28-of-31 free throws. He also blocked six shots in five games with athleticism and wingspan helping him protect the rim. Again, there doesn't seem to be any space for him at the NBA level, but someone should be able find a spot for him and that someone could be the Boom.
Thursday, July 10: Pacers 116, Cavs 115 (takeaways; box score)
Saturday, July 12: Thunder 104, Pacers 85 (takeaways; box score)
Monday, July 14: Bulls 114, Pacers 105 (takeaways; box score)
Thursday, July 17: Pacers 91, Knicks 88 (takeaways; box score)
Friday, July 18: Pacers 113, Pelicans 104