The Indiana Pacers were ready to make a big move up the board before losing in agonizing fashion to the New York Knicks.
Life comes at you fast. The Indiana Pacers found that out over their last few games and are on a 3-game losing streak. While only two of those factor in this week’s batch of power rankings, it none the less popped the brakes on the optimism surrounding Indiana.
Last week’s 3-game win streak made it easy to forget this team is made up of many younger and inexperienced players. Victor Oladipo, Myles Turner, and Domantas Sabonis play a big factor in whether the Pacers win or not, though Thaddeus Young and Darren Collison are certainly carrying their own weight.
Oladipo is still leaping over preseason expectations but his numbers came back to Earth this week as well. Turner’s return only makes the Indiana better, but after finding a rhythm in seven games without him the Pacers need time to re-calibrate.
This Pacers team is very much a work in progress and growing pains are expected, but even in their losses over the last week, we saw just how fun this team is. The high pace offense covers up the defense’s weaknesses, but that’s better than watching Indiana slog out games with similar results.
Next: Pacers Rank: Myles returns, but Oladipo is still on top
The Pacers hit the road to take Detroit Pistons tonight and then visit the Chicago Bulls on Friday. They’ll return home to host the Houston Rockets on Sunday.