8p9s AMA Mailbag: Is It Time For #SOLOBALL?

Welcome back to the 8 Points 9 Seconds mailbag, where we take your Indiana Pacers questions and make you feel internet famous because we answered them!

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James: Should small ball come back for more minutes with a lineup of Monta Ellis, Rodney Stuckey, Paul George, C.J. Miles, and Myles Turner?

Short answer: The Pacers absolutely need to utilize small ball against teams that are punishing the Indiana Pacers for playing Myles Turner at the 4.

Long answer: Yes, but …

First, I see no reason to play Rodney Stuckey over George Hill with that group, unless you’re just giving Hill a rest. Second, I don’t think C.J. Miles is going to play the 4 much moving forward, except maybe in extremely short bursts. Miles still isn’t back to full health, and it really looks like his massive slump/calf injury were probably directly related to the extra toll his body took.

All that being said, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a lineup of George Hill, Monta Ellis, Paul George, Solomon Hill, and one of Ian Mahinmi or Myles Turner. Turner is just lost trying to guard the pick and roll right now against smaller players, and teams know that. I would expect to see Solo playing more minutes, Lavoy Allen playing less, and Myles Turner’s time fluctuating greatly from game to game.

@8pts9secs what about #SOLOBALL?
— Mr. Featherbottom (@mrfeatherbottom) March 14, 2016

Mr. Featherbottom: (Since C.J. Miles is struggling), how do you feel about #SOLOBALL (Solomon Hill at the 4)?

If you had asked me a month into the season, I would’ve ignored the tweet and probably considered blocking you. Now, the way Solomon Hill has been playing, it really looks like the Pacers might’ve made a mistake not picking up his option.

Since the All-Star break, Solo is shooting 38.5% from deep (albeit only on 13 attempts), and has been a consistent effort guy. In the month of March, he’s +26 in six games. All of this is a long way of saying, I’m good with a few minutes of #SOLOBALL when the matchup is right — and when you use all caps to express it.

Melon117: Its really early for this, but what do the Pacers need to be doing (other than winning) to assure they can get Paul George to opt in rather than hit free agency in the Summer of ’18?

Also, what can the Pacers do this summer to set themselves apart from every other team that has cash available in free agency to sign guys that can come in and improve the team immediately?

The Pacers will be able to offer Paul George more years and money than other teams, that’s probably a good start. Other than that built-in advantage, not playing him at the 4, surrounding him with shooters, and keeping a coach he’s comfortable with will help. He’s very clearly stated his preference to play small forward, so the Pacers moving to the Myles Turner/Ian Mahinmi front line probably made him feel a bit better about things.

Outside of players wanting to play in Indiana for some reason, the Pacers have a few realistic advantages. They have a very good coach, a record of sustained (if moderate) success, one of the top 10 guys in the NBA, and a potential All-Star-level big in Myles Turner. It’s possible theywill attract a big fish because of those reasons, but it would seem more likely that they get a mid-tier, Monta Ellis-level guy or two and continue to build methodically.

Materhern: The Pacers seem really inconsistent this year yet again. Where do you see the core of this problem being?

The Pacers lack a true number-one scorer. Paul George can get points, but a good defense keyed in during a late-game situation can stop him. Most NBA teams will have this issue, but the Pacers lack an elite offensive scheme to back him up in those situations as well.

They will struggle to close games and be inconsistent until either they acquire an unstoppable scorer (Monta Ellis is very good, but he’s not at that level), or until they’re able to implement a better overall offense.

Bconfingubhh: Do you think Ty Lawson can fix the Pacers’ issues when he comes back?

The Pacers should be happy if Ty Lawson can get healthy and play 5-10 useful minutes per night. He was not good in Houston, and if he can be just marginally good for the Pacers, it will be a huge win. My guess is that he’s not fixing any real issues the Pacers might have, outside of a second-unit ballhandler.

Jeff L: The Pacers seem to do well after key, measuring-stick wins. Do you think the team has finally molded together and what key matchup do you see that could kick start another momentum swing for us?

The Pacers next three games are brutal: Boston, Toronto, and Oklahoma City. Any of those three could serve as a launch pad to the end of the year, because the rest of the Pacers schedule is essentially paper soft.

More from 8 Points, 9 Seconds

If the Pacers can somehow go 2-1 in those games, they should be favored, and probably the better team, in 11 of their last 13 games, giving them an opportunity to hit a string of weaker competition on a high note. The Pacers are currently in 7th in the East, but if they just take care of business and win games they should for the rest of the year, they could feasibly vault into the 4-6 range — and an easier first-round matchup.

Quann F: Is Paul George just who he is an inconsistent scorer night in and out? Is he really a #1 option? What does this team need to be elite?

Paul George is a great NBA player — probably a top 10 guy in the league. However, he can be stopped. He’s a good, not great, scorer, and falls in love with pull-up jumpers a bit too much.

This team will probably struggle to be elite until one of three things happen: They either need to get a truly elite scorer (unlikely), develop and implement a better offensive scheme (possible, but Vogel hasn’t shown anything of the sort yet), or develop another top-three(ish) defense (seems reasonable, as Vogel did it with slow-footed bigs like Roy Hibbert and David West previously).

I think they could absolutely become elite again, assuming Myles Turner continues to develop and the Pacers veterans don’t fall off a cliff, play wise.