The Indiana Pacers have one of the best records in the NBA at the midway point of the season, partly thanks to their ability to win back to back games.
The 2018-19 Indiana Pacers may be up to something. Throughout this first half of the season, the Pacers have displayed how reshaping a roster in the off-season can pay dividends.
This has been evident in this team’s ability to earn more wins in a back-to-back series compared to last season. Last season, the Pacers struggled to find wins while playing on back-to back nights.
This season that has changed. The most recent back-to-back series for the Pacers was played on January 8th and 9th where the Pacers would earn a 123-115 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena.
The following night in Boston, the Pacers would lose to the Boston Celtics 135-108. Both games were significant Eastern Conference contests as the Pacers sit at number three in the standings with the Toronto Raptors and the Milwaukee Bucks in front of them. Milwaukee holds the top spot.
However, despite the loss to Boston, the Pacers have displayed resilience on the quick turnaround of a back-to-back throughout the first portion of the season.
At this point last season, the Pacers were 5-7 in games played on zero days of rest. During these twelve games, the Pacers won on consecutive nights only once. This season, the Pacers have a record of 9-3 in the first twelve games of the back-to-back series.
In comparison to last season, this Pacers team has won on consecutive nights four times during the stretch of the first twelve games. That’s a large improvement from a year ago.
Like every NBA team, this year’s Pacers team witnessed a change in the landscape. The biggest change has been seen in the play of the bench. Part of this is due to addition by subtraction.
Last season, the Pacers bench include the likes of Lance Stephenson and Joe Young while missing Glenn Robinson III for almost the entire season. These players contributed to the Pacer’s success but have not had the same impact as this season’s bench.
This off-season, Pacers President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard and General Manager Chad Buchanan added several key additions to the roster that have proven to be effective. The Pacers added guards Tyreke Evans, Doug McDermott, and center Kyle O’Quinn. Three notable additions to any NBA roster. These newcomers have contributed to the success of the Pacers throughout this first half of the season and are the main reason the team has had success during back-to-backs.
Domantas Sabonis, who also comes off the bench has contributed to the recent success as well. The big man who is in his second season with the Pacers has risen to league-wide notoriety. He has seen an uptick in every statistical category this season and has been the catalyst for the team’s success in back-to-backs. Sabonis is making a case for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award.
This season, the Pacers bench has averaged 39.4 points per game. Last season the bench finished with a 32.8 PPG. There has also been an increase in bench minutes. This year’s team has averaged 91.7 minutes per game played by the bench. A season ago the bench averaged 84.5 minutes of play.
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Many may correlate this uptick in numbers due to the absence of Victor Oladpio in eleven games due to a knee issue. However, the Pacers bench has sustained their success with their all-star back in the lineup.
The success of the Pacers so far this season in back-to-backs has also been due in part to the team’s success on the road. The Pacers currently hold the league’s second-best winning percentage on the road, going 13-9 during this stretch.
The Pacers schedule up to this point has called for six home and six away games in back-to-backs. This season through January 9th, the Pacers have won five out of those eight on the road. The Pacers bench play coupled with their ability to garner wins on the road have all culminated to their success in back-to-back series.
The 2018-19 season still has a lot left in the tank, but the Pacers have found success early. With Oladipo back on the floor and the Pacers can only improve. With the second half of the season looming, the Pacers will have the task of tackling more series of backs-to-backs but the team will be up to the challenge.