The woes continue for the Indiana Pacers, who lost their fourth game in a row on Monday night (fifth if you include their In-Season Tournament finals loss). They fell to the LA Clippers by a score of 151-127.
Indiana is now 13-12 on the season, which places them in eighth place in the Eastern Conference standings, and the ninth-placed Brooklyn Nets are just half a game behind them.
Defensively, the Pacers simply cannot stay in front of teams. Over the course of their last four regular-season games, the Pacers have failed to hold a team to under 120 points.
Things need to change significantly soon if the Pacers want to stay in the playoff hunt. Let’s take a look at two duds and one stud from the Pacers’ loss to the Clippers.
Dud - Buddy Hield
For the first time in a long time, Buddy Hield shot the ball well. He finished the game with 14 points and four assists while shooting 5-of-9 from the field and 3-of-7 from behind the three-point line.
So, why would he be on the duds list? Well, unfortunately for Hield, while he managed to score a bit better in this game, he got absolutely torched by James Harden.
Hield wasn’t always the one guarding Harden, but when he was, it didn’t go too well. Harden would either get past him with ease or create enough space to nail a three.
For Hield, it’s always been about the three-point shooting, but on a team as weak defensively as this Pacers squad is, his deficiency on that side of the ball has really been highlighted.
Stud - Bennedict Mathurin
On a night when the Indiana Pacers got absolutely blown out, Bennedict Mathurin managed to put up some incredible numbers. It just didn’t lead to a win.
The second-year win finished the game with a career-high 34 points to go along with six rebounds, two assists, and one steal while shooting 12-of-20 from the field and 3-of-7 from distance.
He scored more than anyone else in the game and was one of the few bright spots on the Pacers in this one, as most others had subpar performances compared to their standards.
Defensively, Mathurin left some to be desired, as he wasn’t able to stay in front of the LA Clippers’ stars very well, but he made up for it with his play on the other end.
Mathurin’s outburst against the Clippers has some fans wondering why he isn’t a member of the starting lineup right now, as it seems as though the Pacers could use a change of pace (pun intended).
Last year, he looked like one of the most intriguing young stars in the league, but he’s been plagued by inconsistency this year, and Buddy Hield replaced him in the starting lineup a few weeks back.
Could he regain his starter spot if he keeps up this level of play? Or is it better to keep his role consistent at this point?
Dud - Tyrese Haliburton
There are very few nights when Tyrese Haliburton doesn’t bring it. He’s been by far the most consistent player on the Indiana Pacers this year, and the reason they’ve become relevant again.
Unfortunately, against the LA Clippers, Haliburton had one of his rare rough nights, and while he still acted as a solid playmaker, he struggled in most other areas.
Haliburton ended the game with eight points, two rebounds, and 11 assists while shooting just 3-of-12 from the floor and 1-of-5 from beyond the three-point arc. He also turned the ball over four times.
In addition, Haliburton’s defense wasn’t ideal, as the Clippers’ slew of perimeter stars were able to get whatever they wanted in this game.
All that said, it’s unfair to simply expect a loss whenever Haliburton has a rough game. Indiana’s main focus from here on out should be improving the team around him and getting Haliburton a solid supporting cast.
The team they have in place now is decent, but they lack a secondary star capable of carrying some of the weight on offense, and they don’t have a good enough defensive infrastructure.
Haliburton had a bad night against the Clippers. That much is true. But the Pacers need to get some better pieces to put around him.