8 points, 9 seconds
Fansided

The Good, The Bad, and What’s Next

By Jacob Lane

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 18th: Myles Turner #33 of the Indiana Pacers shoots the ball against the Boston Celtics on December 18, 2017 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 18th: Myles Turner #33 of the Indiana Pacers shoots the ball against the Boston Celtics on December 18, 2017 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – DECEMBER 18th: Myles Turner #33 of the Indiana Pacers shoots the ball against the Boston Celtics on December 18, 2017 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Each Wednesday we’ll take a look back at the week that was for the Indiana Pacers and give you what was good, what was bad, and what’s coming up next.

Last weeks Indiana Pacers schedule & results: 

Tuesday: Detroit Pistons – L 83-107

Wednesday: Dallas Mavericks – L 94-98

Friday: Chicago Bulls – L 104-119

Sunday: Minnesota Timberwolves – L 90-107

The Indiana Pacers New Years Resolution may be to forget about the last week. With soon to be first-time all-star Victor Oladipo out three of the four games last week with a mysterious “sore knee” we got a good look at the rest of the Pacers team. Unfortunately, that look was pretty ugly.

Indiana went 0-4 on the week, getting blown out in three of the four games and struggled to get anything going without their star.

Let’s take a look back at the week.

Star of the week: Domantas Sabonis

Surprise of the Week: Joe Young‘s 20 point performance against the T’Wolves

Most disappointing thing of the week: Myles Turner‘s poor play

The good – The bench steps up 

Cory Joseph of the Indiana Pacers
NEW YORK, NY – NOVEMBER 5: Cory Joseph #6 of the Indiana Pacers handles the ball against the New York Knicks on November 5, 2017, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Aside from the 30 point explosion from Darren Collison against the Chicago Bulls, the Pacers starters were pretty putrid all week long on both sides of the floor. The worst performance came against Minnesota on Sunday, when the Timberwolves jumped out to a 17-0 lead and the first points from a Pacers starter didn’t come until the 4:47 mark in the second quarter. In that same game, star center Myles Turner managed to go 0-5 from the field, scoring just 1 point and grabbing 2 rebounds in 19 minutes of play. I could go on and on about the starters and their poor play, but because of that the bench got plenty of opportunities to shine bright and for the most part, they took advantage of it. Notable performances included Domantas Sabonis’ 10 points and 5 rebounds against the Detroit Pistons and 14 point, 9 rebound performance against Chicago, CoJo’s 10 points, and 6 assists against Dallas, and Joe Young’s 20 points in 24 minutes against the Timberwolves. The bench scored 20+ points in every single game this week, making them the best part of the four-game losing streak.

More from 8 Points, 9 Seconds

While the starters were expected to step up and perform at a high level with their star out, it was the bench that constantly got the Pacers back into games. Hopefully, with Vic expected to be back sometime in the coming days, the confidence the bench got in an extended run in his absence should go a long way in improving the Pacers long term. It was becoming more and more apparent in the weeks leading up to Oladipo getting injured that Head Coach Nate McMillan needed to deepen his rotation, and I think we saw that there are several guys who ready for more playing time. Whether it’s Al Jefferson, Joe Young, T.J. Leaf, Alex Poythress, Damien Wilkins or Ike Anigbogu, McMillan needs to be able to count on some of these guys to keep his starters fresh down the stretch of games.

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