3 ways the Indiana Pacers can silence their critics this season
By Luke Parrish
The Indiana Pacers need stability out of the gate
A big question for the Pacers over the years has been how they will be able to manage a deep roster with more playable players than allocated minutes. In their defense, the front office has built some pretty deep rosters, and the desire to play everyone has made consistency a bit harder to accomplish in the rotation.
Young guys often failed to get the playing time they needed to develop because there were so many talented players in front of them. This year, that looks to be changing due to some unfortunate circumstances and injuries.
Obviously, health has been a huge issue for this team for a number of years dating back now but they cannot be an excuse forever. Sure, losing top guys each year is going to make winning a lot more difficult but good teams find ways to make it work regardless.
Edmond Sumner is already down for the upcoming season with a torn Achilles, opening the door for Chris Duarte to make an immediate impact off the bench. If T.J. Warren misses even more time with his own injury, Duarte could even hit the starting lineup to develop chemistry with those guys.
There is no reason for the Pacers to carry an 11-man rotation throughout the regular season when that unit will be cut to eight or nine by the playoffs. Getting some minutes here and there for guys is fine but they cannot keep mixing things up and throwing rotations for a loop every night.