Post-Game Grades: Pacers Fall Apart Then Fall to Suns
By Jared Wade
The Good: The Indiana Pacers first-half offense. They shot an outrageous 59% on their way to 56 points before the break, but even better than the results was the approach. There was so much excellent ball and player movement out there, with high-low passing, perimeter cuts to the hoop, and good looks all around. And in a game that the Pacers were expected to lose, at least they produced some top-rate game film of themselves to watch in an attempt to replicate that free-flowing style.
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The Bad: The Pacers started off the third quarter in a rut that ended the game. This really started right before the half — with the Suns ending the second quarter on a 7-0 run. Then Phoenix opened the second half on a 23-9 run and just like that Indiana went from up 9 to down 12. They would find a way to cut it to 6 later in the fourth quarter, but the hole they dug themselves in the third would prove too great.
MVP: Goran Dragic. Because Goran Dragic is a serial killer of the Indiana Pacers.
LVP: Donald Sloan. He turned it around later in the game, but he was trash early on.
X-Factor: Gerald Green. You expect him to make a difference, but his 3s seemed to come at the biggest moments for the Suns.
 | David West, PF 27 MIN | 5-12 FG | 0-0 FT | 6 REB | 3 AST | 0 STL | 1 BLK | 3 TO | 10 PTS | -27 |
Didn’t score a ton, but was the key cog in keeping the ball moving. Threw a series of devastating passes.
Solomon Hill, SF 29 MIN | 1-5 FG | 0-2 FT | 4 REB | 1 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 2 PTS | -8Missed an easy bucket or two and needs to contribute more.
Roy Hibbert, C 31 MIN | 6-14 FG | 3-3 FT | 10 REB | 1 AST | 2 STL | 1 BLK | 2 TO | 15 PTS | -19Really nice return line for his first game back from injury. He could have done a bit more against this Phoenix front line, but the failure of the defense was less about Hibbert’s shortcomings and more about a team-wide lack of discipline in getting back in transition.
Rodney Stuckey, PG 20 MIN | 4-10 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 9 PTS | -16His jumpers aren’t helping. Banked in a 3, which really helped since it came during the early-third-quarter stretch when the team couldn’t manufacture any buckets.
Donald Sloan, PG 23 MIN | 3-9 FG | 0-0 FT | 4 REB | 4 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 6 PTS | -20Hurt the team more than he helped.
Luis Scola, PF 19 MIN | 4-7 FG | 0-1 FT | 5 REB | 2 AST | 1 STL | 1 BLK | 0 TO | 8 PTS | +11A lot of vintage Scola stuff tonight.
Lavoy Allen, PF 2 MIN | 1-2 FG | 0-0 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 2 PTS | -1Only played in garbage time, which is weird because Frank Vogel said that wasn’t going to happen.
Chris Copeland, SF 24 MIN | 3-5 FG | 3-3 FT | 0 REB | 2 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 2 TO | 10 PTS | -9Not that good really, but hit his shots and got into double digits.
Ian Mahinmi, C 15 MIN | 2-2 FG | 0-0 FT | 5 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 4 PTS | +3Solid.
C.J. Watson, PG 25 MIN | 5-9 FG | 3-4 FT | 1 REB | 7 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 5 TO | 14 PTS | +3Was the best player of the first half, scoring 10 points on his first 5 shots, but didn’t add much after that.
C.J. Miles, SG 21 MIN | 6-9 FG | 4-4 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 1 TO | 17 PTS | 0Probably his best game of the year. Hit a 3 off the bat then got to the hoop on multiple occasions.
