Player Grades: Pacers role players not enough in loss to 76ers

The Indiana Pacers didn’t get enough from players not named Victor Oladipo or Domantas Sabonis and were defeated by the Philadephia 76ers

Do you want the good news first or the bad news first, Indiana Pacers fans?

I regret to inform you that despite what you may have just chosen I am giving you the good news first. The good news is that regardless of what the final score was tonight, you can watch this highlight of Domantas Sabonis dunking all over Joel Embiid as much as you want. The sadness you may have had after this loss will soon subside, but the smile you will get from this video will last for as long as you please:

The bad news is that the Pacers lost to the Philadephia 76ers, and many players looked out of rhythm. Those losses are the most frustrating to deal with since it seems like they could have been avoided. But the loss wasn’t avoided tonight:

Victor Oladipo has ruined my writing ability

I don’t have the vernacular to describe Victor Oladipo anymore. He just shows up and dominates every game. His 11th straight game over 20 points happened tonight, and he got his first 30-pointer of the year in this one.

36/6/7 is video game stuff. Vic just has it this season, whatever it is. Maybe he had some of Michael’s secret stuff from Space Jam. I don’t know. He just has it, and he has inserted himself into the early MVP discussion.

The Pacers can’t quite handle switching

This marks two games in a row where a team that switches like size (i.e. the defense will switch who is guarding who if the two defenders are near each others size) has slowed down the Pacers offense. It significantly diminishes the value of the looks the Pacers are getting.

The team shot under 40% from the field. Instead of just attacking the mismatch every time there is a switch – if there even is a mismatch – they could set some off ball screens or cut more, basically anything to get the defense A) moving and B) scrambling. There is an onus on everyone to fix this problem because the current solution isn’t working.

The Pacers bench continues to be good

Indiana’s bench had 10 more points than Philly’s, and both Domantas Sabonis and Cory Joseph were solid on both ends of the floor.

There are many games where this has been (and will be) the case. This bench group has scorers, floors spacers, defenders, and fits well. It’s going to be the Pacers card up their sleeve this season.

The Pacers will attempt to get back on track in Miami on Friday against the Heat in their new uniforms.