5 preseason stats that (sorta) matter for the Indiana Pacers
By Ben Gibson
Tyreke Evans and Doug McDermott shot a combined 31.7 percent
Two of Indiana’s offseason signings struggled to find the bottom of the net in the preseason, so should the Pacers worry about the bench just yet?
No, and not yet. Let me explain.
Overall, Tyreke Evans played well and was in the flow of things. While his stats didn’t show it, his pick and rolls with Domantas Sabonis paid off well for the Pacers. There’s no reason so far not to think he’s an upgrade over Lance Stephenson.
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Evans’ 31.6 shooting percentage will undoubtedly rise, as well as his 3-point shooting mark of 21.4 percent. He’s proven over the past few years that his long-range accuracy is no fluke.
What I find more concerning (as much as preseason can be) is Doug McDermott’s play.
It isn’t so much that he went 7 of 22 (31.8 percent) from the field or 3 of 12 (25 percent) from long-range. Outside of his rookie season, he’s shot no less than 36 percent from the field and that percentage got better every year.
It was the fact he was shooting at a lesser rate than he had in the past.
If McBuckets is a contributor this season, it won’t happen with him shooting fewer 3-pointers. Part of that was Doug standing around. Was that him getting discouraged from his shot not falling or a failure of creativity from Nate McMillan?
When McDermott was on the move, the result was him living up to his nickname. It’s hardly time to panic, but if he gets stuck in neutral with the Pacers, it’s safe to say we started to see the signs in the preseason.