Without Domantas Sabonis, the Pacers bench struggles to do more than break even

In recent games without Domantas Sabonis, the Indiana Pacers’ bench is struggling to score and it’s costing Indiana dearly.

Life without Victor Oladipo hasn’t been easy for the Indiana Pacers, but they’ve managed to make it work. Life without him and Domantas Sabonis, however, has put a real strain on Indiana’s bench.

Since Oladipo went down, their bench is still leaving a positive impact thanks in part to Nate McMillan’s efforts to keep the bench intact while altering the starting unit. However once Domantas Sabonis went down four games ago with an ankle injury, it’s been much harder for the Pacers to get anything done with their reserves.

Without Sabonis, they just aren’t the same. Indiana’s bench has been one of its strengths this season, but right now, breaking even is a struggle.

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On the season, the Pacers top 10 most used lineups were all in the positive. It didn’t matter if they were starter heavy or bench heavy in their composition. But in Sabonis’ recent absence, there is both no longer a heavily used bench unit,nor as many 5-man units, with positive net ratings.

There’s a simple explanation for why they struggle so much without Sabonis, and it’s not just because of his scoring is missing.

As Will Furr put it in our Slack chat, Sabonis is the hub of the Pacers’ bench. Just look at how many assists go through Sabonis as either the passer or scorer. The rest of the unit revolves around him.

Even if Sabonis isn’t scoring himself, he serves as the pivot point on so many of the Pacers’ possessions. And with Domas’ 14.3 points on 61 percent shooting, the gravity he creates on his own is powerful enough to open up the floor for his teammates. It’s a big reason the bench (plus Thaddeus Young) has the highest net rating among 5-man lineups in the NBA.

You see Sabonis’ value as both a scorer and passer when the attention of all five defenders is seemingly drawn to him as he crashes down into the paint. Whether it’s a teammate standing on the 3-point line or one cutting away from the basket for an open shot, Sabonis not only creates the opportunity but has the ability to connect on those passes and covert those possibilities into actual points.

For perspective, Sabonis throws the 33rd most passes per game despite coming off the bench. The fact he is as willing a passer as he is a shooter makes him so difficult to guard. When a defense dedicates more resources towards stopping him, that’s more chances for the rest of the Pacers.

Tyreke Evans (and the Pacers) miss Domantas Sabonis dearly

Tyreke Evans is the bench’s primary ball-handler and creator, but it’s clear how much he needs Sabonis as a partner in crime. On the season, the Pacers posted a 6.3 net rating with Evans and Sabonis on the court. In these recent games without Sabonis, Evans saw that net rating drop down to -12.2.

Without Sabonis to serve as the axle, the wheels of the Pacers bench unit flew off. Evans can’t get the defense off balance without the threat of Sabonis crashing down into the paint. It’s why McMillan has turned to the healthy starters to play extended minutes and cut down on the benches’ minutes, including Evans.

Missing a player obviously makes it harder for any team to succeed. Not only does the team need to fix the hole left by the injured player, but they are forced to go deeper down the bench to replace whoever was called up. It’s even worse when that player plays a key role in both moving the ball and scoring.

Nate McMillan tried to mitigate this issue at times by keeping the bench unit intact when a starter went down. But without Domantas Sabonis, that wasn’t an option. Until he returns, Indiana’s bench won’t be one of its assets.