Jarace Walker is making York County basketball history, once more.

If only his injured ankle will allow him to actually play on the NBA’s biggest stage …

Walker, from small-town New Freedom, became the highest − and one of the only − NBA Draft picks from the county two years ago. (The Washington Wizards chose him eighth overall and promptly traded him to the Indiana Pacers).

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The high school superstar who bypassed Susquehannock and the YAIAA in order to play for the elite IMG Academy in Florida has made slow but steady progress during in his first two NBA seasons − fulfilling the lifelong dream he started in Southern York County.

Now, the first-round draft pick is going to the NBA Finals − the first from the area to do that, too.

Jarace Walker of the Indiana Pacers.

Jarace Walker of the Indiana Pacers.

But will he get to play in the series that begins Thursday? Walker, who was a backup contributor through the playoffs, suffered a significant ankle injury in the Pacers’ Eastern Conference series-clinching victory Saturday over the New York Knicks.

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Since, coach Rick Carlisle said he expects Walker to miss at least the first two games of the Pacers’ finals series against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

NBA Finals: When will Jarace Walker play for Indiana Pacers?

Walker made his only shot in seven minutes on Saturday before suffering the right ankle injury. He stayed down for an extended time before crawling off the court and being helped to the locker room. He was using crutches the following day, Carlisle said, and figures not to be available until Game 3, at the earliest, on June 11.

The 6-foot-8, 240-pound power forward was averaging less than 10 minutes per appearance in the playoffs. His best was a 12-point, five-rebound effort during Indiana’s first-round series against the Milwaukee Bucks. He’s shooting 8-for-20 from 3-point range during the postseason.

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Walker saw more time during the regular season, his second in Indiana. He made five starts and played nearly 16 minutes per game, averaging 6.1 points and 3.1 rebounds on 47.2% shooting from the field.

It’s certainly been a growing and learning process for the schoolboy phenom who left York County after starring for Susquehannock’s freshman team as a 6-foot-4 eighth grader. He spent the next four years at IMG in Bradenton, Florida, where he won a national championship as a freshman and developed into a McDonald’s All-American and coveted, 5-star recruit.

He would spend just one college season playing for legendary coach Kelvin Sampson at the University of Houston, where he earned conference freshman of the year honors. He helped lead the Cougars to a No. 1 ranking and the Sweet 16 in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

His NBA start: Get outta here: York County’s Jarace Walker shows off jaw-dropping talent in NBA debut

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Central Pa. in the NBA: Few central Pa. players ever made it to NBA. Jarace Walker set to join that elite list.

Jarace Walker in 8th grade: One of the nation’s top 8th-grade basketball stars is at Susquehannock. But will he stay?

Now, after two pro seasons, he’s still working himself into the expected do-everything standout, lauded particularly for his defensive prowess and stunning 7-foot-plus wingspan.

Walker is only the third player ever with strong ties to York County to play in the NBA, following Mark Hendrickson and Del Beshore. New Cumberland’s Beshore did not get drafted but made the Milwaukee Bucks after a camp tryout in 1978 and played in the league for two years.

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Hendrickson grew up in Washington state, though he spent his summers and holidays in York County with both sides of his family. He settled in the area after being a second-round draft pick of the Philadelphia 76ers in 1996 and, later, pitching for five Major League Baseball teams.

Frank Bodani covers Penn State football for the York Daily Record and USA Today Network. Contact him at  fbodani@ydr.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @YDRPennState.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Indiana Pacers’ Jarace Walker: Will injured power forward play in NBA Finals?