After a quick exit from the playoffs and the firing of Nate McMillan, what is next for the Indiana Pacers?
The NBA bubble was a roller coaster ride for Pacer fans. Entering in, the Pacers believed to be having a fully healthy team and aimed to make a deep playoff run. The begging of what would be a month-long ebb and flow started when Victor Oladipo stated he would sit out of Orlando and continue his rehab on his right quad tendon.
Oladipo eventually decided that he would try his best to play in Orlando and take it day by day feeling out how his knee responded. The ever so familiar injury bug once again bit the Pacers, this time taking out their best player and All-Star Domantas Sabonis. Plantar Fasciitis would be the culprit. Reports were that it was so bad that Sabonis couldn’t even put any weight down on his foot.
The Pacers looked great in their first game against the 76ers. TJ Warren had one of the most memorable games of the bubble by going bionic and scoring 53 points, third-most points in a game in franchise history. The Pacers went 6-2 in the bubble only losing to the 8-0 Phoenix Suns and the Miami Heat. There was hope that the Pacers could push the Miami Heat in a first-round playoff series.
The playoffs rolled around and hopes were high for fans of the Indiana Pacers but quickly those hopes would be brought down back to Earth. The shorthanded Pacers had absolutely no answer for Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat. The Pacers had no counter for the 3 point prowess that Miami showed in that series. It was four very painful games to watch if you’re a fan of the Pacers.
Same results, different year
Familiar shortcomings played into yet another sweep for the Indiana Pacers. The toughest pill to swallow was yet again not having their best player come playoff time. This would devastate any team in the NBA trying to make a postseason run and the Pacers are well too familiar with it. Coach Nate McMillan did an amazing job playing with the hand he was dealt but ultimately his reluctancy to change his offense would be his downfall.
In today’s game, the 3 point shot is king followed by shots at the basket. The Pacers offense feeds off the midrange which due to analytics is considered something of the past. I personally love the midrange shot due to its effectiveness that it could open up the floor for spacing. I only like it though if the shots are of high quality, either being wide open or having a player that can consistently hit them. Nate’s offense has been one of the talking points of why this Pacers squad would have a ceiling. Could what would be considered an archaic style of basketball really work in today’s game?
The tipping point came in the playoffs. The Pacers offense looked absolutely lost. Kudos to the Heat as they are a very solid defensive team but McMillan seemed as if he had zero answers to counter it. The offense was compiled of dribble handoffs between 3 players that ultimately ended up in a turnover or bad shot. The ball movement was nonexistent.
Myles Turner refused to work in the paint until Game 4 and didn’t take advantage of the mismatches created when smaller wings of the Heat, such as Duncan Robinson, would get switched onto him. I believed this could be one way to generate some offense would be for Myles Turner to win that mismatch by either scoring or getting fouled. This would eventually draw a double team and the Pacers would then be able to work inside out. The players even looked disinterested in the offense.
McMillan’s third sweep in this tenure with the Pacers would lead him to be dismissed. This comes at an odd time since Kevin Pritchard announced that would extend McMillan for another year. Nate was dealt a bad hand by not having his best players but two straight years of sweeps, reluctancy to change his offense, and possibly losing his voice in the locker lead the Pacers parting ways.
The Future for the Pacers
With all the uncertainty surrounding this offseason, the Pacers are faced with some major decisions. The most important being the head coach vacancy. Kevin Pritchard stated in his end of the year press conference that the last few playoff exits have “left a bad taste in his mouth and doesn’t want to be 4 and out each year.” The next head coach will have to do more with this team than Nate McMillan did, but the question is who is the right person for the job?
Mike D’Antoni has already been mentioned via Woj. The Rockets have yet to extend him and this season is the last year on his current contract. It makes sense for the Pacers to be interested as the Pacers have been one of the worst-rated offensive teams in the league for the past couple seasons and surely D’Antoni’s system would fix those problems.
Kenny Atkinson is another name being tossed around. Yes, he was fired this season from Brooklyn, the work he did with last seasons Nets team was very impressive taking them to the playoffs eventually losing to the Sixers. This may be one of the “ program builders” they are looking at. Atkinson does have the Spurs connection which usually helps at getting a job in the league. Personally, I’m not sure if he is a good fit if we are wanting to take the next step.
The Head Coach hire will be a huge part of this offseason and it could affect how the roster looks heading into next season. The Victor Oladipo rumors are swirling around that he doesn’t want to resign with the Pacers. In all honesty, it would be in his best interest not to resign this offseason due to the fact he would make more money with a good season regardless if he re-signs or not.
Conflicting rumors have come about that Justin Holiday may want to leave. Justin Holiday did have one of the best seasons of his career and could get a decent payday this offseason. Also, another thing to look out for is will the new head coach be alright with playing Sabonis and Myles at the same time or will they move on from one of them?
What I think will happen is that Pritchard will give this team one more chance at it. However, this will likely be the last chance they get as a group. Next summer this team could look a lot different from the possible departure of Oladipo requiring the team to shake things up. For right now, I fully expect to see this team back next year minus Justin Holiday depending on what happens with his free agency. All we can hope for as Pacers fans are that this next head coach is the right hire and can take us to the next level.