3 playoff teams the Indiana Pacers could emulate next season
By Luke Parrish
The Indiana Pacers might want to study the Utah Jazz
Myles Turner is simply not a talented a versatile enough player to be the centerpiece of a rebuild but the Pacers could still find a way to make him the focal point of their roster. The Jazz have made a living with a stud defender in Rudy Gobert while surrounding him with high-level assets across the board.
Donovan Mitchell, the 13th overall pick in 2017, has become their go-to scorer on offense while Gobert is the glue that holds the rest of the team in place. Utah has also done a good job of adding scoring threats and defensive studs in recent years. The addition of Jordan Clarkson, who took home the Sixth Man of the Year Award in 2021, was vital for the Jazz.
Joe Ingles is one of the best 3-and-D players in the league, especially when you factor in his contract compared to the league’s superstars. Indiana may not have a player quite of his caliber but Justin Holiday is the nice veteran to fill that role if the Pacers cannot find one in the draft.
If they do land someone like Moses Moody in the upcoming NBA Draft, the Pacers could be in a very good spot with Moody, LeVert, and Turner leading the way. As far as Turner specifically, he has the defensive prowess to be a legit threat like Gobert, and we saw that quite often last season.
If Myles can stay on the floor, he can be a high-impact defender with a little more offensive upside than Gobert, although Gobert is a monster down low. This would be a much more challenging blueprint to emulate but the Pacers would be in a much better spot if they had more versatility.