By Mallory Mattingly
The Indiana Pacers organization doesn’t have much hope for the rest of the season, but center Micah Potter wants to keep playing the best he can.
After Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles tendon in Game 7 of the NBA Finals last year, the Pacers have been plagued with many other injuries this season. The team currently sits dead last in the Eastern Conference and are 15-51.
Even in the midst of losing, Potter has found considerable success, seeing the most playing time of his career. The center currently averages “career highs in points per game (9.4), rebounds (4.7), assists (1.5) and minutes played (19.6),” according to Sports Spectrum.
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“Playing winning basketball as best as I possibly can,” Potter told the media last month after he had a career-high of 23 points. “I know the situation we’re in as far as guys being injured and things like that, so roles will change based on different lineups. But when I’m in the game, I try to play winning basketball as best I can, be physical, use my voice and try to help my teammates and create for my teammates.”
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Over the course of his entire five-year career, Potter had played only 38 NBA games. But this season alone, he is already at 32 games and is likely to surpass his current total of 38.
With that kind of shift in his career, the center has leaned on his faith in God.
“You have no control over your life,” Potter told Pastor Mark Walton in an interview last June. “I mean, you can get traded at any point; like you have to move across the country. There’s very little social stability in this job. And it’s a business.”
“But God’s in control. We’ve been doing this for a couple years and God’s been very good to us. So we’re just going to take it day by day and trust God,” he emphasized.
Potter describes himself as a “follower of Jesus” in his Instagram bio, which also includes Matthew 6:33: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Potter often shares his faith through his social media posts.
“New year, new team, new blessings! God is good all the time!” he wrote in a January post.
In another on, he said, “Trusting God with the process!”
He then quoted Proverbs 3:5-6, which reads, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
Even though the Pacers are 15-51 and last in the Eastern Conference, Potter remains focused on doing what he can to win games for his team. His faith in Jesus helps him stay joyful even when things don’t go how he hopes.
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