Player Grades: Pacers end slump, dismantle Nuggets at home
By Joe Beckman
The Indiana Pacers snapped a 4 game losing streak, beating the second best team in the Western Conference in dominant fashion.
The Indiana Pacers did tonight what they haven’t done in the past 4 games — play a solid 48 minutes of basketball. Indiana was never threatened all night as they easily cruised to a victory.
100. Final. 88. 73. 124
Indiana’s recent offensive struggles were not an issue tonight as they were able to get a balanced attack going. The squad dished out 34 assists and shot an efficient 56% from the field.
After playing 4 games in 6 nights, Indiana looked far more effective against an elite Nuggets defense after getting two days of rest. Bojan Bogdanovic scored 35 points on arguably his most efficient night of the season, shooting 13-16 from the field. Bogdanovic has certainly earned himself a nice payday in the offseason with his phenomenal play.
Each game moving forward will be critical for Indiana, as they only have a 1 1/2 game lead over the Boston Celtics for the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference. With the final spot for home-court advantage up for grabs, the Pacers will need to pull off more impressive wins as 7 of their final 8 opponents are against teams in playoff contention — two of which are against Boston.
#PeakReke
Has Tyreke Evans finally found his role within the Pacers? Evans played yet another solid game, scoring 11 points (5-9 shooting), grabbing 5 rebounds, and dished out 3 assists. Without Oladipo, Evans was brought in to be the secondary shot creator that the Pacers lacked last season. If Evans continues to play as well as he has recently, the Pacers will be in much better shape in the playoffs.
Controlling the glass and limiting turnovers
The Pacers were in for a challenge going up against the #1 team in the NBA in second-chance points. The Pacers were able to deliver, outrebounding the Nuggets 49-41. Turnovers have also been an issue for the Pacers lately, but the Pacers were able to share the ball well, assisting on 34 baskets to only 11 turnovers.
McDermott throws it down
#McDunkContest detonated once again tonight.
#McDunkContest pic.twitter.com/ywfYHFIDLE
— Tony East (@TonyREast) March 24, 2019
That’s always fun! Now, player grades:
:(. Get well soon, Darren.<br />. PG. Indiana Pacers. DARREN COLLISON
C+. It was nice to see Matthews get out of his mini-slump by knocking down a couple of threes and playing his usual good defense.. SG. Indiana Pacers. WESLEY MATTHEWS
SF. Indiana Pacers. BOJAN BOGDANOVIC. A+. I do not think I have seen a more efficient game out of anyone this season. Bogdanovic was 13-16 from the floor scoring 35 points. I’ll be honest, I didn’t expect Bogdanovic to play this well when Oladipo went down. Bogey continues to be a pleasant surprise this season.
B. Thad dished out a solid 5 assists and played his usual stifling defense. Not much else needed from the Pacers glue-guy.<br />. PF. Indiana Pacers. THADDEUS YOUNG
A. Turner was exceptional on both ends of the floor tonight, scoring 17 points, grabbing 11 rebounds, and blocking 2 shots. He also played as best of defense anyone can play against Nikola Jokic. Happy Birthday, Myles.. C. Indiana Pacers. MYLES TURNER
A. 7-13 from the field, scoring 15 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Sabonis continues to be a nightmare for backup Centers.. C. Indiana Pacers. DOMANTAS SABONIS
C. Cojo played great defense but was pretty invisible on offense. Joseph will need to at least be reliable with the ball for the Pacers to have a chance in the playoffs.. PG. Indiana Pacers. CORY JOSEPH
A. 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists for Evans tonight. When he plays like this, the Pacers bench is difficult to stop. Hopefully, his recent play isn’t a fluke.. SG. Indiana Pacers. TYREKE EVANS
DOUG MCDERMOTT. A. He deserves an A just for the dunk.<br />. SF. Indiana Pacers
C. Indiana Pacers. KYLE O'QUINN. -. Garbage time, but he hustled his butt off when it didn’t matter which was a joy.
TJ LEAF. -. Garbage time, although I am looking forward to seeing him get more minutes next year.. PF. Indiana Pacers
-. Garbage time only. We might see more Ed now that the Mad Ants season is over.. SG. Indiana Pacers. EDMOND SUMNER
B+. 4-8 shooting for 11 points to go with 5 assists is a good night for the rookie. I really hope he gets more of an opportunity next season.. PG. Indiana Pacers. AARON HOLIDAY
-. Got in the game at the end. It was great to see him play again.. PF. Indiana Pacers. ALIZE JOHNSON
Next. The Indiana Pacers are officially playoff-bound. dark
The Pacers next take on Paul George and the Thunder on Wednesday in Oklahoma City. The team will look to replicate its performance against OKC from last week in which they came back to get a huge win.