The Indiana Pacers are no longer straddling the line of the top 10 in this week’s power rankings roundup.
Thanks to beating the Oklahoma City Thunder and Orlando Magic, the Pacers are now firmly in the top 10 in the major NBA power rankings.
Beating the Thunder on their home floor likely was the biggest factor in the slight rise, even if it took four 3-pointers — including the first of Myles Turner’s NBA career — to come back for the win.
Losing to Miami on Monday won’t help things, but outside of the obvious mistakes, the Pacers losing to the Heat on the road isn’t the worst thing to happen to Indiana this month.
The Pacers have an average rank of 8.5 this week and moved an average of 2.5 points.
The ranking in the highest Indiana has been in 8 weeks.
ESPN’s Marc Stein has been impressed with Monta Ellis’ play as of late, but that was before he looked wore out Monday night in Miami on the back end of a back-to-back. He’s still scoring less than a year ago, but he’s fitting in well in Indiana.
"More and more, Indiana is seeing the Monta Ellis it expected when he arrived as the Pacers’ marquee offseason acquisition. He was Indy’s top scorer in much-needed weekend wins at Oklahoma City and Orlando, though Ellis still sports the second-largest PPG decrease (minus-4.9 PPG) for any player who started at least 40 games last season behind LaMarcus Aldridge (minus-6.5 PPG)."
For NBA.com’s John Schuhmann, it was the fact the Pacers closed out two games on the road (again, before losing to the Heat), something they’ve struggled with this season.
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- 3 positives, 2 negatives in Pacers In-Season Tournament win vs. Cavaliers
- 2 positives, 3 negatives from first week of Indiana Pacers basketball
- Should Isaiah Jackson’s days with Indiana Pacers be numbered?
"There was a time when the Pacers were neither a good road team or a good team in close games. But they’ve begun the post-break schedule by coming back from seven down with less than three minutes to go in Oklahoma City on Friday (shooting 4-for-4 from 3-point range) and escaping with narrow win in Orlando on Sunday. Their new starting lineup has allowed just 84 points per 100 possessions in 125 minutes."
And finally, Hoops Habit’s Gerald Bourguet reminded us of how the Pacers lost to the Heat and gave a prediction for the Pacers’ ultimate fate.
"The good news: The Indiana Pacers have won four of their last six games, Monta Elliswas their leading scorer in big road wins in OKC and Orlando, Paul George is trying hike his field goal percentage back out of 40 percent territory and Myles Turner is going to be an absolute beast in this league.The bad news: Ellis had a chance to provide a road win in Miami but only went 1-of-2 from the free throw line to send the game into overtime (which Indiana eventually lost), the defeat dropped Indiana to fifth in the East and a quiet trade deadline means Frank Vogel’s squad is what it is: a team as likely to lose in the first round of the playoffs as it is to win."
Next: Picking Apart the Indiana Pacers Turnover Problems
While they have the loss to Miami on their record for this week, the Pacers have a 3-game homestand with the New York Knicks, Charlotte Hornets, and Portland Trail Blazers visiting Bankers Life Fieldhouse this week.