Player grades for each Pacers player at the halfway point

The B’s

This group has all been better than their expectations for the Indiana Pacers, but not by as much as the first group.

Aaron Holiday: B+

Rookie point guards are not expected to contribute at an NBA level. You draft point guards for the future. Aaron Holiday – perhaps in part due to his having 2 old brothers already in the NBA – has come in ready to contribute right away. His stats are nothing that screams helpful, but the Pacers have a very good net rating when he’s on the floor, and he looks every bit the part of an NBA point guard when he’s on the floor. The 3 isn’t falling yet, but his confidence and form certainly make it seem likely that it will. He’s going to be really good.

Myles Turner: B+

It’s been a weird year for Myles Turner. Nate McMillan repeatedly told everyone how much they focused on his defense over the summer, and his offense seemed to lag behind. That defense, though. Turner is a legitimate DPOY candidate. He’s top 3 in the league in blocks, and his improved strength was evident from his game 1 beating of Marc Gasol. Turner is now a legitimate defensive anchor, and that alone probably makes his contract feasible. Ever since early December though, ponytail Myles has come to eat your soul. Since December 10, Myles is averaging 16 points and 8 rebounds while shooting 56% from the field AND from 3. Prior to that, he was averaging just 11.6 and shooting 24% from deep. If ponytail Myles is the real Myles, this becomes an A easily.

Doug McDermott: B

It’s hard to grade Doug McDermott so far this year. When Nate runs sets to get him the ball, he’s been deadly. The rest of the time, he’s been silent outside an occasional 3 on a defensive miscommunication or a back door cut. I get the feeling McBuckets issues are less related to anything he can control and more on the coaching staff.

Cory Joseph: B-

Cory Joseph is what he is. He’s a borderline elite defensive point guard who can’t do much on offense besides shoot open jumpers. 37% from 3 is a career high, and it looks totally sustainable. He needs to cut down on the bad midrange fadeaways/floaters and keep his head up on the drive, but even if he only ever moderately improves from here, CoJo is a high-end backup point guard and pinch starter.

Kyle O’Quinn: B-

Kyle O’Quinn is the perfect utility big man. Even as he’s seeing a career low in minutes and counting stats as the Indiana Pacers nominal 5th big man, he’s ready to go every time he’s called upon. KOQ is doing the same things in Indy that he’s done his whole career; block a few shots, can a few jumpers that no announcer on planet earth thinks he can hit (hint: he can), and throw some beautiful passes to the smart cutters around him. He’s a luxury to have.

This next group includes just two Pacers, but both are starters that the Pacers need to see improvement from in the 2nd half of the season if they want to hold real playoff hopes. Introducing: your starting backcourt!