What is the best defensive lineup for the new-look Indiana Pacers?

McConnell, Oladipo, Brogdon, Holiday, Turner

Yeah, I’m not crazy about the look of this one either. Assuming that Oladipo, Brogdon and Turner should always be in an all-defense lineup, the Pacers don’t have many viable options to guard wings and the 4 spot.

So you have to get shifty. Both Brogdon (6’11”) and Holiday (7’0″) have the wingspan to handle smaller wings and stretch fours, even if it isn’t a natural spot for either. Going small and keeping Turner as the defensive anchor seems like a stronger option than pairing Domantas Sabonis and Turner on defense.

The two combined for a solid 99.6 defensive rating in 429 minutes of on-court action together last season. But the duo got exposed by Boston in the playoffs, and it’s difficult to trust the two as the best defensive frontcourt option at this point. Pritchard and McMillan have put their faith in Sabonis and Turner working together, but any possible defensive prowess is firmly in the “believe-it-when-I-see-it” category.

McConnell, on the other hand, slid backwards defensively last season, but is still likely the scrappiest option the Pacers have at the 1 (with the necessity of pulling Brogdon to a wing spot). McConnell consistently averages about 2 steals per 36, which would top almost every Pacer last year.

This lineup would probably be the Pacers’ best bet against smaller lineups, but Holiday at the four and McConnell at the one are glaring weaknesses. If someone like Edmond Sumner shows significant improvement this year, this lineup could be tweaked and perfected as the season goes on. Giving Brogdon the bigger defender over Holiday may be necessary, as Holiday only packs a 181 pound frame.

If you were to go all in on wingspan, though…