The Indiana Pacers clinched the season series with their third win over the Brooklyn Nets, the second over them this week.
With the game tied and the clock running out in the fourth quarter, Victor Oladipo casually dribbled the ball as he waited to take another potential game-winning shot. The crowd could sense it, and after already hitting two earlier this year, they expected it.
Oladipo pulled up from 28 feet away and launched a 3-pointer over the head of DeMarre Carroll.
But it missed.
The Pacers went into overtime and took care of business, but it did make you wonder if Indiana’s only plan in these situations is let Oladipo do his magic.
Against the Brooklyn Nets — despite their better than expected season so far — you can get away with this. The Nets were on the tail end of a back to back and were running on fumes. Brooklyn shot just 33.3% in the final period and Indiana outscored them 70-54 in the second half, so it wasn’t as if they had momentum.
More from 8 Points, 9 Seconds
- 2 Studs, 1 dud from gut-wrenching Indiana Pacers loss to Charlotte Hornets
- Handing out early-season grades for Pacers’ Bruce Brown, Obi Toppin
- 3 positives, 2 negatives in Pacers In-Season Tournament win vs. Cavaliers
- 2 positives, 3 negatives from first week of Indiana Pacers basketball
- Should Isaiah Jackson’s days with Indiana Pacers be numbered?
Victor Oladipo rightly possesses all the swagger in the world left over after Lance Stephenson and is comfortable taking that shot, but it probably wasn’t the best basketball decision. With the clock winding down and the game tied, there was no risk in driving to the basket to either pick up a foul, find a teammate, or still get a shot off. Settling for a 3-pointer is fun, but the Pacers could have used the opportunity to find out what else they can pull off in similar situations.
It’s far from an actual problem but against better teams, this might not be the best way of doing things.
On the bright side, you could see Carroll both trying to guard the 3-pointer while staying on his heels. Oladipo is someone who can beat you both ways, a testament to his evolution this season.
The Good: Despite the nit-picking, Oladipo’s 38 points on 56.4% shooting powered the Pacers as usual. The question no longer is can he keep this up, it is how many All-Star votes will he get.
The Bad: Another bad first quarter (28-21), followed by a worse second (29-20).
Indiana’s been outscored 55.5 to 52.6 this month in first halves, and 28.6 to 25.5 in the first quarter. More often than not they’ve rallied for the win, but just like settling for a contested Victor Oladipo three, there are better ways to do things.
MVP: Myles Turner deserves a good deal of credit for leading the charge in the third quarter and into the fourth. He scored 14 of his 23 points in the second half as he shot a perfect 5 for 5, including a pair of 3-pointers. Oladipo picked up things late, but Turner deserves credit for the defensive and offensive turnaround in the third.
The Lance Stephenson Experience™pic.twitter.com/GiBxzFHcK6
— 8 Points, 9 Seconds (@8pts9secs) December 24, 2017
Next: T.J. Leaf is killing the G-League
The Indiana Pacers get to enjoy their Christmas before taking on the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday at 7 p.m.