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8p9s Roundtable: What Seed Will the Pacers Get?

By Jared Wade

Mar 12, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) hangs on the rim after dunking against the Milwaukee Bucks at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana defeats Milwaukee 109-103 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 12, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) hangs on the rim after dunking against the Milwaukee Bucks at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana defeats Milwaukee 109-103 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /
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True or False: The Indiana Pacers have some chance to beat either the Hawks Cavaliers in a playoff series?

Donahue: True, but probably only in the most technical sense of the word. Indiana is playing well, but has also benefited from a kind schedule and some timely opponent injuries. My sense is that Atlanta is not only more talented but remain a very tough stylistic matchup for the Pacers. Cleveland is probably more vulnerable, but LeBron can still win a series on his own. This changes some if (a) Paul George returns, (b) is effective, and (c) doesn’t disrupt the current flow too much.

Gibson: False. The Hawks … maybe, but doubtful. Atlanta will try to stretch out the Pacers like they usually do, and that has spelled trouble for Indiana in the past. There is no chance to beat Cleveland without a 100%-ready Paul George — something I don’t think we’ll see this year. If by “some chance” you mean eaten by bears, then sure, Indiana has a chance.

Washburn: True. Though I don’t see Indiana beating either team —  both Atlanta and Cleveland are amazing — the Pacers could absolutely give the Hawks a hard time in a playoff series and possibly even force a game seven. Unfortunately, I don’t see any possibility for an Indiana/Atlanta matchup since I doubt the Pacers finish in 8th place.

Bishop: Very slim chances. The Pacers don’t have the offensive weaponry to go basket for basket with LeBron James and Cleveland or the trio of Jeff Teague, Paul Millsap and Al Horford. To win, they would need injury luck and Paul George at his per game numbers of 20-5-5 to win. They wouldn’t win a series against either, but it would make fun basketball.

Medworth: False. While, I think they could take it to six games and make it interesting, I don’t see the Pacers winning a seven-game series against those teams. All of this discussion remains in the “maybe” territory because we don’t know when or what Paul George will be able to contribute. Assuming he’s not 100% until next year, the Pacers would not be able knock off one of these teams.

Next: Beating the Raptors, Bulls or Wiz?

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