Indiana Pacers: Three things to look for vs. Suns

The Indiana Pacers travel to Phoenix to take on Devin Booker and the Suns. Here are three things to look for tonight in Talking Stick Resort Arena.

The Indiana Pacers continue its five-game road trip tonight in Phoenix. In game three of the stretch, the Pacers look to get back on track after falling to the Utah Jazz on Monday night.

After the dismal performance, T.J. Warren and the Pacers come to Talking Stick Resort Arena with a chip on their shoulders.

In a bout against his former team, Warren will look to lead the way against the Suns and help the Pacers pull out a win against a Western Conference opponent before tackling the second half of the team’s west coast road trip.

Here are three things to look for tonight in the Pacers’ first game against the Suns this season:

Strong performance from T.J. Warren

Warren is returning to familiar territory tonight. The small forward will be taking on his former team. Selected with the 14th overall pick of the 2014 NBA Draft by the Suns. This will be Warren’s first and hopefully last opportunity to take on a former team.

During his days in Phoenix, Warren developed his reputation as a scorer. However, due to the Suns’ lack of success over the past few seasons, many fans weren’t aware of Warren’s value and potential.

Luckily for Pacers fans, the team’s front office did its due diligence and brought one of the more consistent players in the NBA to Indiana.

Warren has been arguably the most reliable option for the Pacers so far this season. That has led to Warren being regarded as a professional scorer and a catalyst for the team’s recent success.

Expect that to be no different tonight in Phoenix.

Over the last 10 games, Warren has averaged 18 points. That included a 36-point performance against the Charlotte Hornets. With more than enough motivation tonight due to the Suns letting him go for basically nothing, expect the small forward to make an example out of his former team.

A battle amongst the big men

So far this season, Domantas Sabonis has proved to be an all-star. The power forward started the current five-game road trip on fire after recording his first career triple-double against the Denver Nuggets but had a below-average night in Utah on Monday.

On the other hand, Myles Turner has had a slow start to the five-game road trip and will look to turn things around against a Suns team that is trending in the right direction.

The duo of Sabonis and Turner will look to bounce back after their last performance but will have a tough matchup in competing against Phoenix’s Deandre Ayton and Dario Saric.

Ayton has only played in 13 games so far for the Suns but has started to come into his own as of late.

On Monday against the San Antonio Spurs, Ayton finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds, his fourth straight double-double. The 1st overall pick of the 2018 draft will look to build on his recent stretch of success against the Pacers.

Turner and Sabonis will have to thwart any opportunity of Ayton finding his rhythm in order to leave Phoenix with a win.

With Aron Baynes out of the lineup tonight due to left hip soreness, Saric will have an increased role.

The power forward has remained healthy and in 43 games has averaged 9.9 points and 6.3 rebounds. However, the Suns will need a great effort from him to have any chance against the Pacers. With stretches of inconsistency, the Pacers’ bigs will look to take advantage of a Suns frontcourt that is still trying to mesh.

Thankfully, Indiana has one of the best power forward-center combinations in Sabonis and Turner. The combo will look to give the big men of the Suns problems for all four quarters.

How the Pacers defend Devin Booker

It’s no question that Devin Booker is one of the most dynamic scorers in the NBA.

The shooting guard is currently averaging 26.8 points and is having a career year. With Ricky Rubio as the starting point guard, Booker has had a load of responsibility taken off his plate which has translated to more consistent play.

In the past four games, Booker has averaged 36 points and will look to continue the surge against the Pacers. This leaves the Pacers’ coaching staff with difficult decisions in how to approach defending Booker.

Malcolm Brogdon has been a solid piece for the Pacers on both ends of the floor, however, Booker’s athleticism and skillset presents a difficult matchup for the point guard.

That will leave Pacers assistant coach and defensive specialist Dan Burke with the decision to either have Jeremy Lamb defend Booker because of his length or trust Brogdon with the assignment.

Prior to coming to Indiana, Lamb was not known for his presence on defense, but so far has reversed that perception as a Pacer.

There’s no stopping Booker from getting his but a comprehensive game plan in defending him will allow the Pacers to have success.

The Pacers have been shaky in defending the perimeter this season and that will need to change in defending Booker who has averaged 5.2 attempts this season from long distance. In the Suns’ last game against the Spurs, Booker had 37 points that included four 3-pointers on 4-of-6 attempts from beyond the arc.

Brogdon and/or Lamb will have their hands full but expect the Pacers’ coaching staff to develop a plan of action to stop the former Kentucky Wildcat from gaining any momentum.

The Pacers have a great opportunity to get back on track tonight in Phoenix before heading to San Francisco and Portland.

Despite their 18-25 record, the Suns present a difficult matchup for the Pacers and is a game the team will take seriously. Hopefully, Pacers fans can find some mid-week joy with a Pacers win.