From Reggie to Roy: Pacers Draft Success Rooted in the “Second Ten”

Barring a trade, the Indiana Pacers will pick 11th in tonight’s NBA draft. While it would always be nice to have a higher pick, the Pacers have gotten a lot of mileage out of players taken in the middle of the first round.

From 1994 through 2000, the Pacers went to five of the seven Eastern Conference Finals, reaching the NBA Finals in 2000. Those teams were led by Reggie Miller (11), Dale Davis (13), Mark Jackson (18), and Jalen Rose (13).

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When the Pacers set a franchise record of 61 wins and returned to the Conference Finals in 2004, that team featured MVP candidate Jermaine O’Neal (17) and Defensive Player of the Year Metta World Peace (16).

David West (18) and Roy Hibbert (17) played prominent roles in blue and gold success over the past few year while, Danny Granger (17) earned an All-Star berth and a Most Improved Player award for the Pacers during their lean years.

The following charts show how much Indiana has relied on the “Second Ten” for minutes and point production during their eight conference final runs over the last 21 years.

While many of these players were not drafted by Pacers, it does give some insight into the team building philosophies forged under Donnie Walsh and continued under Larry Bird. Indiana is comfortable with players in this area of the draft, because their history underscores that key players can be found outside of top ten. It’s even possible to find a franchise cornerstone, if you get lucky with a rail-thin shooter from California.

It’s a workman-like way to build a team — counter to the magic bean theory of team building — but it has served the Pacers relatively well. Only the San Antonio Spurs (10) and the Los Angeles Lakers (9) have been to more conference finals since Indiana’s emergence from mediocrity in 1994.

Still, there are limitations.

For as much regular season and Eastern Conference playoffs success the Pacers have had, they have always fallen short. Basketball is a star-dominated sport, and Indiana has often fallen to the stars of the day — Patrick Ewing; Shaq and Penny; Jordan and Pippen; Shaq and Kobe; LeBron, Wade & Bosh.

Take a look at the minute distribution for the team that eliminated the Pacers over their last three playoff appearances: LeBron’s Miami Heat:

Of course, the Pacers have gotten key contributions from top ten Picks both in the ’90s (Rik Smits #2) and more recently (Paul George #10). So, even hitting on the #11 tonight leaves the Larry Bird and Kevin Pritchard with plenty of work to do.

Nonetheless, thar’s gold in them thar’ middle picks — something the Pacers know from experience. It’s just up to them to find it.

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