We’re about a third of the way through the 2018-2019 Indiana Pacers season. Let’s give out some awards to commemorate the occasion.
The first trimester of a pregnancy is filled with uncertainty, changes, and moments of both beauty and pain as the fetus grows and develops into an eventual newborn baby several months later. The expectant mother has to learn to adapt to her new situation as the baby develops, dealing with things such as (*checks WebMD*) weight gain, constipation, bleeding, and breast tenderness.
Clearly, the first trimester of a young NBA season isn’t exactly the same (although maybe Vic’s injury absence was actually due to some wicked constipation, not a bum knee), but there are absolutely some other weird (and probably uncalled for) parallels we can draw between both of these things. In the first third of a new season, the team is learning to adapt to roster and identity changes that are different from last year. The players have to get used to each other all over again as the team grows into the beautiful full-term fetus is will become by the time the playoffs come around.
Okay, weird pregnancy comparisons aside, this first couple of months of Pacers basketball have given us our first look into what this team is going to be like as the season rolls on. There have been several highs and lows as the squad has maneuvered their way through the early portion of their schedule, and it’s time to recognize some of the players for what they’ve excelled at so far in 2018-2019. First up, the big one: