The Indiana Pacers now have two wins on the season after losing their first three games of the season. The Pacers will play in five tough games this coming week starting against the Chicago Bulls.
The Expectations
The Indiana Pacers have a grueling schedule this coming week all against Eastern Conference opponents. The Pacers will be facing the Chicago Bulls, Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic.
These five games will test the Pacers because they will be without both Myles Turner and Edmond Sumner.
The Pacers may also be missing Domantas Sabonis for the matchup against the Bulls because of a calf contusion.
The Pacers may have some trouble winning games if Sabonis will be out for some time.
With all of this into consideration, I can see the Pacers winning at least three of these games. The games I see the Pacers winning are against Chicago, Charlotte, and Orlando.
The Pacers can walk away with a win against Washington, but they will need to contain the rebounding of Thomas Bryant and Bradley Beal’s shooting.
As fans have seen earlier this season, Detroit has defeated the Pacers twice. The first game was from poor shooting and rebounding. The second was from a last-minute bucket from Derrick Rose.
The Pacers were on the verge of a win when playing in Detroit, but some late-game mistakes were made which ruined the opportunity.
What Will Happen After Winning These Games?
Wins against Chicago, Charlotte, and Orlando will help boost the confidence of all the players. The Pacers will be tested on their rebounding in each of these games.
Even if the Pacers drop one of these games, it will still help boost the intensity of practices which translates to strong outings. A win against Chicago would help down the line as they are in the same division as the Pacers.
How Can They Beat Detroit and Washington Easily
As said before, the Pacers will have a good chance of beating the Wizards, but they will need to limit Beal and Bryant. If the Pacers were completely healthy, I would hand them the win immediately.
However, I will not give them credit yet. The Pacers have struggled early on the defensive end of the court but reversed the trend against the Cavaliers at home. However, they will need to lock down against both of these opponents.
Defense and rebounds are required to beat the Pistons. Drummond has destroyed the Pacers in the rebounding column in the prior games this year, and they have not had Blake Griffin play this season. Once both of them are on the court together again, The Pacers’ top priority against the Pistons will have to be getting rebounds.
Worse-Case Scenario
The worse possible outcome I can see is that they will lose three or four of these games.
The Pacers have a lot to prove in these next five games, especially with a porous lineup. However, this can benefit the team down the road as they will continue to improve with each week with the return of Victor Oladipo on the horizon.
Expect the Indiana Pacers to display some grit over the next week.