(Photo: Frank McGrath/Pacers)
For the first time in five years the Indiana Pacers are in the NBA Playoffs. The combination of the Pacers 136-112 trouncing of the Washington Wizards and Orlando’s 111-102 overtime victory over Charlotte clinched a spot for the blue and gold.
Wednesday night was as good as it can possibly get offensively for the Pacers. They shot nearly 60 percent for the game and 54 percent from three-point range with 13 trifectas to their credit. The offensive onslaught led to season-highs of 43 points in the first quarter and 75 points at halftime. After three quarters the Pacers had scored 108 points.
Danny Granger was an extremely efficient 7 of 11 from the field for 25 points to lead seven Pacers in double figures. When Granger takes good shots like he did against Washington he is a bear to stop. It’s hard to remember a forced shot. That’s a lesson for what will be needed in the playoffs. All seven players in double figures shot better than 50 percent. It was that kind of night.
The star of the game was Paul George, who shot 5 of 6 on three pointers to chip in a career-high 23 points. It couldn’t have come at a better time for the rookie. There have been many recent games where George looked lost offensively. His three point shooting has been abysmal and without it he hasn’t been able to contribute much in the way of scoring.
There were whispers that Mike Dunleavy should be put back in the starting lineup. After all, George was the one starter who hadn’t necessarily earned his role. His promotion was attained because Dunleavy was injured. On Tuesday Pacers coach Frank Vogel shot down suggestions that he make changes to his starting lineup. It’s hard to say if this vote of confidence helped the starters, but it sure looked like it against the Wizards.
George seemed like a new player. If he can build on this game the Pacers starting lineup becomes a matchup problem for most teams. Without a consistent threat at the shooting guard the Pacers become much easier to defend. For instance, if Roy Hibbert is posting up or Darren Collison is running a pick and roll with Tyler Hansbrough help is always there if George is not a threat to hit a three pointer. If George is a threat it becomes much harder for defenses to help and the offense opens up.
Against the Wizards Hibbert had 16 points, Collison 15, Hansbrough 15, Dunleavy 14 and Josh McRoberts 10. Perhaps even more important, Collison garnered a double-double as he dished out 11 assists in what had to rank as one of his better nights all season.
This was a game where little defense was played on either end of the court. The Pacers will certainly have to have to stiffen up on defense for what looks more and more like a first round matchup with the top-seeded Chicago Bulls. Giving up 112 points is not going to cut it.
One sequence that demonstrated the lack of defense on this night came in the first quarter when Hansbrough missed the second of his free throws then quickly knifed down the lane past three flat-footed Wizards. These three seemed mesmerized as they stared at #50 throwing down an uncontested dunk. It was like they were saying, “Yeah we’ll get you next time.” And get him they did. Later, as if to make up for the embarrassment, Andray Blatche committed an unnecessary flagrant foul as Hansbrough drove for a layup. This was a case where a clean, hard foul would have been called for… but that just demonstrates the ineptitude of the Wizards.
The Pacers now can turn their attention to the playoffs, where there will be no Washingtons on the schedule. Making the postseason, even with a losing record, is a big accomplishment for the Pacers. There were times in this uneven season that the task seemed too big for this team. The Pacers will surely make it their goal to beat their opponent in the series, but even one playoff win will go a long way towards building for the future for a team that hasn’t played in the postseason for half a decade.