How will the 2020-21 season shape up for the Indiana Pacers?
The Indiana Pacers hope to return to the playoffs once again in 2021 as they bring back a near-identical roster from last season. Members of our staff have supplied their predictions for the upcoming season. Aaron Braaksma, Rhett Bauer, George Moser, Sam Black, and Luke Parrish have each put their predictions on the table.
Regular season record and finish for the Indiana Pacers
Bauer: I think the Pacers will finish with the No. 6 or 7 seed with a record of 42-30. Decent enough record, but a lot of the top teams got better through trades/signings. Having brought everyone back, the Pacers’ only avenue for improvement is internal through health, coaching/scheme, or young player development, and I’m not sure that’s enough to get a top-four seed.
Moser: In a 72 game season, I’m expecting some oddities to happen. My gut says the Pacers will have about a 60% win rate or a record of 43-29. I’m optimistic that they’ll side into the fifth seed. While I expect some teams such as the Nets to get a lot better, I would not be surprised to see other teams falter.
Black: I actually have a new-found optimism for this team and the overall potential for what it could start growing into this season. That being said, teams like the Bucks, Nets, Celtics, and Heat either are as elite as they were last year, will see a massive growth via the offseason moves, or even both, (I’m looking at you Milwaukee and Brooklyn). Because of a continuously loaded Eastern Conference, I can see the Pacers comfortably being a competent, and now efficient team under the new philosophy of Nate Bjorkgren.
Braaksma: I don’t want to come off as a super Pacers fanboy but I have some high optimism for this team. I think they could finish anywhere from 4-7. They were the 4th seed last year with their starters barely playing together at all. They didn’t make any moves but still improved internally.
Parrish: I see the Pacers as a very good team still but they will see some challenges in another weird season. They will win 41 games and finish with a lower seed in the playoffs. Seventh in the Eastern Conference is my best guess.
Indiana Pacers playoff predictions
Bauer: They’ll make the playoffs, this is Indiana of course. First-round exit if everyone is healthy on both sides, I just don’t see them beating the other top East teams in four games out of seven unless Oladipo comes back 100% and everyone is on the same page as a team.
Moser: Indiana should make the playoffs. The good news is that Coach Bjorkgren should be able to break the Pacers’ nine-game playoff losing streak. The bad news is that another first-round exit is extremely likely.
Black: I think this is a real growing year for the Pacers, and it’ll take much more than one pseudo-season plus postseason for this team to transition out of the Nate Mcmillan dark ages of slow-paced, mid-range dominated, ‘dribble for a decade of the shot clock’ offense that has plagued our postseasons of past. Because of this and just how loaded the top four will be, we could see another, albeit optimistic, first-round exit.
Braaksma: Unless the injury bug bites the Pacers harder this year they should definitely make the playoffs. Can they win a series? Maybe. I don’t think another sweep is coming this year though, I have a lot of faith in Bjorkgren.
Parrish: As the No. 7 seed in the East, Indiana would run into a powerhouse of a No. 2 seed, which could be Brooklyn, Boston, or Toronto. Another first-round exit is likely but I believe the Pacers will put up a fight this time around. They lose the series in six games instead of four.
MVP of the Indiana Pacers
Bauer: This might be an outside the box answer, but to me, it has to be Nate Bjorkgren. He’s going to have to be the catalyst for a possible Oladipo reconciliation, a Myles transformation, and/or just generally improving everyone’s play through a more creative offensive scheme.
Moser: Malcolm Brogdon. Over the past season, Brogdon asserted himself as one of the key voices in the locker room. We know he can be a leader, and this season Brogdon has the tools to make a tremendous impact both on and off the court. I think this season we’ll see The President make an impact and set Coach Bjorkgren and the rest of the team up for success.
Black: The answer has to be Nate Bjorkgren. Even just looking at the numbers, it was evident that Nate Mcmillan was severely limiting the potential of this team by completely ignoring the modern game of hyper-focusing on threes, layups, and free throws, and it was a big reason the Pacers weren’t as efficient of an offense as they should have been with players like Brogdon, Sabonis, and T.J. Warren.
I think getting someone from a coaching staff that by year two of Nick Nurse’s tenure had become one of the more efficient offenses in the league, we see a great philosophical change with how our offense, and even the defense, is played.
Braaksma: This may be an unpopular opinion but I’m going to go with T.J. Warren. He is our best scorer, the dude doesn’t miss. Along with that, he developed into a pretty good defender last year. If he is balling, I feel like it gets the whole team going. Also in Kevin Pritchard’s press conference, he said that they are going to try and get him into a leadership role which just adds to his value.
Parrish: T.J. Warren is the MVP for Indiana, in my opinion. He was the leading scorer last season and gave them life in the bubble. If he returns as the primary scoring option, he will be vital for their success.
Which Pacer are you most excited to watch?
Bauer: The most important player to watch next season is Oladipo because of his contract situation and whether or not he has a trade market, but I’m most excited to see Goga Bitadze. He was barely used last year, one of the least among all rookies.
And if we believe a big might be traded, which I still do, we have to see Goga come along and be ready for a bigger role. He has an extremely rare skill set as a bouncier version of Myles, so he should get more of an opportunity to develop, and I can’t wait to see what he can be.
Moser: I’m excited to see Oladipo play. After this bizarre offseason, I think Oladipo’s reputation and even his NBA career is in jeopardy. Perfect time for a herculean season to prove all of the haters wrong. I don’t see any other way he’ll be able to get the money he thinks he deserves.
Black: The main reason I was so happy the Turner and Hayward sign-and-trade never happened was that I was nerding out about what Myles Turner could become with a coach who actually let him shoot more than 9.5(!) shots a game. I think Myles was severely misused, but now we have a more creative offensive and defensive coach who I think can really turn Myles’s immense potential into tangible, dominant 2-way play that is perfect for the modern game that he’s flashed before.
We’ve had this capable three-point shooting, athletic, defensively dominant big with real potential to be a star player, and I think we are going to see him have the long-awaited breakout year we’ve been eager to see from him with a fresh, competent offensive system.
Braaksma: I’m super excited to see Myles Turner play so I’m glad we didn’t ship him off to Boston. Many Pacer fans seem to hate Myles but I’m not one of them. It’s pretty obvious that Nate McMillan wasn’t the best coach for Myles’ career and I think with Nate Bjorkgren he’s going to shine.
Hopefully, he gets the ball more in the run and gun system I think is going to be run. When Myles got the ball in the playoffs he shined so I’m ready for Myles to get a bigger role in the offense.
Parrish: I am really excited to see Aaron Holiday as he enters his third NBA season. He took huge strides last season and could be in for an even larger role in 2020-21.