8p9s Roundtable: Will the Pacers Get Home-Court Advantage in the Playoffs?
By Jared Wade
4. Fact or Fiction: Monta Ellis and Jeff Teague as a back court will bring more benefits than problems?
Furr: Fiction — but I believe it will be closer than it might look. Both are small, but if they’re healthy and able to shoot league average from deep (Monta’s been close for a good portion of his career, and Teague had a career year last year at 40%) they’re going to be a headache to defend. That being said, I think they’re fine regardless, in that they won’t kill the team. There’s a potential path to them being a net positive though.
Neal: Fiction. There are certainly benefits to having both Teague and Ellis on the roster. However, I think having them as a duo on the court together brings more problems, particularly defensively. Teague is an OK defender. Ellis was a much better on-the-ball defender than I expected last year. However, his off-the-ball defense left a lot to be desired. I think they can work out the offensive end, as both do need the ball to be successful, but I expect the team defense to take a step back due to the Teague/Ellis pairing.
Hughes: Fiction. I would wake up everyday and go to sleep every night with a smile on my face if the Pacers could sucker another team into taking Monta Ellis while giving back something useful. This team really needs shooting, and really needs defense. Ellis brings neither. He’ll score more than last year as there will be more fastbreak opportunities. Jeff Teague’s penetration will open things up a bit, too. All of this is about Ellis, really, because I see Teague having a nice bounce-back season. Even next to George Hill — a good shooter and defender — I didn’t like Ellis’s fit. He just really shouldn’t be starting on a team anymore that actually has hopes of achieving success.
Wade: Fact. It won’t be pretty and the defense might be a complete nightmare. But they’ll get buckets. This team is going to be fast and put up points. It won’t be ideal by any means and shouldn’t be the pairing any team seeks to put together. But Larry Bird says he wants points. They will get them.