The Indiana Pacers: Putting Together The Pieces Of The Puzzle

By File:Anthony Tolliver defending Paul George.jpg: joshuak8 derivative work: Chrishmt0423 - → This file has been extracted from another file: Anthony Tolliver defending Paul George.jpg , CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31545591

While a lot of the attention in the offseason has been switched on to the Warriors and the Knick this offseason, the Pacers have been building a masterpiece under the radar. Let's take a look at the significance of the roster they've been putting together.

Jeff Teague- This point guard comes from the 2014-15 coach of the year, Mike Budenholzer who transformed the whole Hawks team. This was a team that was second in defensive rating in the league last season, only falling behind the Spurs. However, as good as this team was, they didn't have a superstar which hurt their chances dearly of scoring when it came to the playoffs. Now Jeff Teague is a guy that likes to get the offense going. He is a fast paced guard. One of the biggest things Teague brings to the floor though, is his shooting. Last year, Monta Ellis had a rough year. The paint was very tight and his offense didn't thrive. Now that Teague, a 40% 3-point shooter and a great player off the dribble, is on the team, this will open up the paint for the rest of the team.

Myles Turner- This guy made his mark in the playoffs last year. He's proven he has a place in the league. His toughness mentality is amazing and you know he'll be learning a lot from big Al Jefferson on toughness. This just might be Myles Turner's break out season as he didn't really have a chance last season to do so. Expect big things from him defensively.

Paul George: He is star of the team. Of course with Paul George, you will know what you're getting out of him, a lot of offense and a lot of defense. With a small forward that can guard guys like KD and LeBron James you know that Pacers are going to have an easier time winning against these elite teams.

Thaddeus Young: This is probably one of the most underrated acquisitions that have happened this off-season. Thaddeus Young is known to be a good solid defender. He is one of the leading power forwards in steals for a few years now. Young has a pretty good post game and can somewhat stretch the floor. But the ability to put the ball on the deck and rebound efficiently from the power forward sport is what stands out. Young is an athletic power forward. He can drive better than most of them. And to top that off, he can rebound. This left handed big men is a big piece since the Pacers lacked good big men last season. Young brings a lot to the table that a lot f power forwards don't have. He cuts and runs the floor. You know him and Teague are going to be having a great time in transition.


Monta Ellis: This year is the year that Monta Ellis has a comeback year. It was rough for him, but for two reason. Number 1, he didn't have many big men to play pick and roll/pop with. This year he has Jefferson and Young. Number 2, with more shooters the paint will be open more. I have a good feeling about Ellis this year.

The Bench: Al Jefferson is going to be the guy to come off the bench to destroy the other team. They are going to ask him to score and rebound. He will be used constantly in pick and roll with Paul George, Monta Ellis, and Jeff Teague a ton.

Aaron Brooks is the guy that I'm so happy they grabbed, besides D.J. Augstine, I think Aaron Brooks is one of the best bench players you could have. This is a guy that is know to be able to shoot and score. But not only can he score, he has a big effect on his teammates. His ability to pass is amazing. The acquisition of Brooks is very important to the success of the Pacers success.

The other players they have, guys like Rodney Stuckey and and C.J. Miles can just flat out score. Glenn Robinson III might be a guy that can really provide a lift offensively as well as Joe Young. They also have a good defensive center in Rakeem Christmas if someone were to go down. Their bench is something that they can count on.

As you can see, the Pacers are on track to win this season. If they can stay healthy, their limit is unknown.  They are going to be a very fast paced team that is going to push tempo. To me, they have a roster that has a chance at taking down the Cavs. I can't wait to see this team in action!

Raptors VS Pacers (Game 6)

Series Tied 3-3

We're going to game 7 baby! This has been an up and down series for both teams, but it looks like the Pacers are ready to pull ahead.

The Pacers were up and running. Their offense was amazing. It all started from Paul George. He ended the night with 21 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block. Once the defense started to surround him, he could kick it out to the open player. This lead to all 5 of the Pacers starters reaching double figures in scoring.

The Pacers offense was in transition a lot. The team had 21 fastbreak points, and it really started at the defensive end for them. They forced 16 turnovers from the Raptors, which really just started the break for the Pacers. Guys were making the right play defensively. This lead to the Raptors shooting just 36.7% from the field. The Pacers just thrived off of this.

For the Raptors, Jonas Valanciunas and Corey Joseph were the only guy producing at and efficient rate for the Raptors. Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan really played poorly. Both of them shot under 30% from the field and neither of them had over 10 points. The Raptors had 83 points. They need these guys to produce. They just can't win without at least one player having a good night. Imagine the Thunder having Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook shoot less than 30% and have 10 points or less. They wouldn't be that good of a team at all! Lowry and DeRozan need to play like stars.

The Pacers are on a roll now, and the Raptors need their guy to produce for them to have a chance. Lowry and DeRozan have had 6 games to find their rhythm, and it needs to show in game 7!

Raptors VS Pacers (Game 5)

Raptors Lead Series 3-2

The Raptors won a big game last night. For the Pacers to beat the Raptors in the series, they now have to win the next two games. The Raptors are finally in control of the series. Here's why.

DeMar DeRozan finally looks like DeMar DeRozan. He had 34 points as he shot 45.5% from the field and more importantly, he shot 12-13 from the free throw line. He took plenty of this mid-range shots and got to the rim with ease. He was a huge reason this Raptors team won. However, this game was really close, a lot closer than the Raptors would have liked. Kyle Lowry still needs to step it up. He shot 3-11 from the field and 1-5 from three. George Hill outscored him. They need him to step it up.

I was very impressed with how great Bismack Biyombo was in this game. He had 10 points and 16 rebounds in the game and was a +10 on the floor. He helped this Raptors team stay in this game when the Pacers had a 17 point lead over the Raptors. Norman Powell was also great in the game and a big benefactor.

Paul George played great. He was amazing. He shot 57.9% from the field, had 39 points, 8 assists, and 8 rebounds. He really had his team winning. While he probably should've taken the last shot, he made the right play. If there was about 1 more second on the clock, the Pacers would've won that game. But they lost since the shot didn't get off in time. However, this game shouldn't have come down to that last shot. Somehow, in 7 minutes and 29 seconds that Ty Lawson played in the game, the Pacers lost 18 points from their lead just with Lawson being in there. Him and C.J. Miles were horrible off the bench. Rodney Stuckey shot 1-10 from the field, but he actually played solid defense and he ended with a +1 for the team. I don't even know how the Pacers can even play Miles and Lawson next game.

I do want to mention that the Raptors had 12 assists in the game. It was horrible. Their ball movement was so stagnant and I'm really shocked they won the game. I think that if the Pacers didn't have horrible bench production, they would have won. The Pacers bench ruined the 4th quarter. Completely ruined it. The Pacers only had 9 points in the 4th. Only 9! It was horrible. The Raptors are very lucky that Paul George didn't play the whole quarter. 

Raptors VS Pacers (Game 4)

Series Tied 2-2

The Pacers dominated this game. Offensively they couldn't be beat. As for the Raptors, they were the exact opposite.

The Raptors stars have again struggled. Lowry shot 4-12 in the game and DeRozan shot just 4-15 in the game. Both players have shot under 33% in this series! They have not played good at all which has caused the team to suffer. As a team, the Raptors shot just 36.5% from the field. This needs to change.

For the Pacers, they were great. Paul George did not have to carry this team. George Hill and Ian Mahinmi both had 22 points. Mahinmi played so great. He also had 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block. Myles Turner didn't shoot well as he only shot 15.4% from the field, but he grabbed rebounds, played great defense, and hustled for every loose ball.

The Pacers moved the ball very well. Everyone was very unselfish. The team had 24 assists on the night. The Raptors had just 12 assists. The turnovers also effected the game. The Raptors had 17 turnovers and the Pacers had 25 points off those turnovers. The Raptors turned the ball over and then didn't get back to play good defense.

The Raptors need their stars to perform. They can't win with them shooting under 30%. Valanciunas can't carry the team. If the Raptors don't have a change from their star players, they aren't going to be looking that great in this series. The organization can't afford to lose this series.

Raptors VS Pacers (Game 3)

Raptors Lead Series 2-1

The Raptors have home court advantage once again! They took it back in Indiana where they beat the Pacers by 16 points. Let's take a look at how this game played out.

DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry didn't have the best games, but it was sure better than how they were in the first 2 games of the series. Both of them combined shot 37.5% from the field. While there play wasn't the best, it was crucial for the Raptors win. However, someone that stepped up was DeMarre Carroll. He had 17 points in the game and played great defensively on Paul George. PG-13 shot just 6-19 and that was mainly because of DeMarre Carroll. This really hurt the Pacers which ultimately lead to their demise in the game.

The Pacers didn't do well in responding to George having a bad night. Monta Ellis had just 7 points. If George is having an off night, Ellis needs to produce for the Pacers to even have a shot at winning. And with the team shooting 38.2% from the field, that is where you tell Monta Ellis and Rodney Stuckey to just go out there and score and that is where Frank Vogel messed up. Sometimes, you need guys to go into isolation or pick and roll and just tell them to score. The Pacers never really did that and scoring guard, Rodney Stuckey only played 16:55 minutes in the game and only put up 2 shots.

Toronto's bench played very well and just had an all out duel with Indiana's bench. Both bench provided a great lift in the game for both teams so it was nice to see the benches duel it out. It was great to see competition from the bench and I was really hoping it would carry over to the starters but it never did. It was a good game to watch, but the Pacers just didn't get enough offense at all and if they are going to win game 4, they need offense from their star players.

Raptors VS Pacers (Game 2)

Series Tied 1-1

The Raptors fans actually got to see their team win tonight. It was a relief to see them pull it off. There were many reasons for the Raptors victory and the Pacers loss, let's take a look at them.

Unlike last game, Jonas Valanciunas stayed out of foul trouble for the whole game. He ended the game with 4 personals and he played 31 minutes in the game. He contributed largely with 23 points and 15 rebounds which really destroyed the Pacers. The Pacers really have to find a way to stop Valaciunas.

Kyle Lowry has had another poor game. He shot just 30.8% from the field and he was 0-5 from 3-point range. It really hasn't been the Pacers that have stopped him from scoring either. They have actually left Lowry open as he shot 2-10 on uncontested field goals. Unlike last game though, Lowry did a great job of reacting differently. He got into the play in different ways than trying to score. He had 9 assists and 7 rebounds in the game along with only 2 turnovers. So while Lowry didn't shoot well at all, he was a big factor in the win for the Raptors.

A thing that really determined the game was the bench. The Raptors bench played really well while the Pacers bench played pretty poorly. The Pacers bench shot just 1-12 from 3 while the Raptors bench shot 5-10 from 3. The Raptors bench was much more efficient than the Pacers bench.

Both teams didn't play the best tonight, but it was obvious that the Raptors had the edge. One thing that the Raptors have to do is win 1 game in Indiana. If the Pacers win all of their home game, they are going to advance to the next round of the playoffs.

Raptors VS Pacers (Game 1)

Pacers lead 1-0

The Raptors have been the higher seed for the 3rd straight year and have lost game 1 for the 3rd straight year. Raptors fans can't seem to catch a break and it always seems to be because of a guy named Paul. Last year and the year before it was Paul Pierce, this year, it's Paul George. But, the reason why the Raptors lost weren't because his name is Paul. Let's take a look at the reasons for their downfall.

The Raptors controlled the boards pretty much the whole game. They ended the night with 52 rebounds as a team while the Pacers only had 38. Jonas Valanciunas was a big part of the rebounding as he had 19 boards in only 21 minutes. Valancinas also was a big factor in the Raptors pick and roll offense, which the Pacers did a very poor job defending. However, Valanciunas was in foul trouble for almost the whole game and that is why he was limited to only 21 minutes. That took away the pick and roll that the Pacers were struggling to defend. I think if Valancuinas played even 10 more minutes, it could have been a very different game.

Of course, the Raptors didn't get really any offense from their stars. DeRozan and Lowry combined for only 25 points. Both of them shot under 30% from the field and really struggled to get anything going. And Lowry did not do a good job at running the offense. He had 7 great assists, but with those assists he has 6 turnovers. The whole team has a total of 19 turnovers and had some really poor quality passes.

The team was really killed by their own shooting. The team shot 38% from the field, just 21.1 % from the 3-point line, and a really bad 68.4% from the free throw line. They left 12 points at the free throw line. The Pacers were fouling them a lot, but it didn't matter since the team wasn't converting.

The Pacers did a lot right. They had some very great 1 on 1 defenses, however, they really need to work on their pick and roll defense because the Raptors were really hurting them with it when Jonas was in, and they also need to know how to rebound off that.

Offensively, the Pacers were great in the second half. Paul George was involved so much more, in fact, he had 27 of his 33 points in the second half and shot 10-13 in the second half as well. Once the Raptors were focused on George, he did a great job at finding the open man. As for defending PG-13, the Raptors really need to get out on him and force him into the paint where the Raptors have done such a great job defending. If you take a look at George's shot chart below, you will see just how bad he was in the paint. The Raptors just have to force them inside where they can defend him easier.

Paul George- shot chart- www.nba.com/stats

 A big thing that the Raptors need to do is get more fast break points because they is where they excelled but they only had 8 of them tonight while the Pacers had 13. The Raptors need to get back on defense and push them-selves on offense.

A key factor in the games to come is going to be Monta Ellis, if he can score like he did tonight, I think that the Pacers could be able to come away with the series. Ellis and Valanciunas are the X-Factors in this series. They could decide who wins the series.

NBA Inside The Player Of The Week (Nov. 26-30)

Paul George is your player of the week. If you are wondering why, well, here are the facts. George helped his team get a 3-0 record this week while contributing a great amount of production, not only from the offensive, but also defensive end.

Last week, George averaged 37.3 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 2.3 APG, and 1.3 steals. Not only that, but his shooting numbers were through the roof as he made 54.7% of his shots from the field and 57.1% of his shots from beyond the arc.

Not only did George help his team win, he helped them win on the road. 2 of the 3 games for the Pacers last week were road games and George really provided in those 2 games. He averaged 39.5 PPG, 6 RPG, 2.5 APG, and 2 steals on the road this week. He shot 60% from the field and 66.7% from the 3-point line. And George took a lot of 3's in those two games. He shot 18 of them and made 12 in those road games.

While George played really well, he does need to watch his turnovers. He averaged 4.3 of them last week. It didn't seem to matter though as the Pacers did win all of their games last week including 2 road games. Not only did George help his team get victories, but he did it while averaging astounding numbers. So congratulations to Paul George for winning this weeks NBA Inside The Player Of The Week Award. Also a big thanks to Patel Production who gave you the highlights above.

PG-13 Is Putting Up Some Great Numbers

When Paul George went down, it shocked the NBA community. Everybody said that George would be out for the next season, and nobody expected him to return. But when Paul George returned, people didn't see the same Paul George. They saw a Paul George who didn't lead a team. Everyone thought that Paul George might never be the same. Then came the 2015 preseason, and George exceeded everyone's expectations.

So far, PG-13 has played 5 preseason games, and he has been anything but disappointing. His first game of the 2015 preseason was against the New Orleans Pelicans where he scored 18 points. It should be noted that Paul George played a lot of the PF position in that game. However, it didn't seem like that best match-up for him as he had to guard super-star, Anthony Davis. Despite the sub-par defense, Paul George's offense look great as he attacked the rim with power and finesse.




In his second game, which was his most impressive, George scored 32 points total against the Detroit Pistons. It was obvious that at that point, everybody knew that Paul George was back. He controlled the offense and dominated in that game as they grabbed the win. One thing worth pointing out is that he shot 5-9 from 3 point land. That seems to be something that George has improved. While 32 points isn't that big of a deal, George scored those points in 24 minutes. He seemed to be knocking down every shot in that game as he shot over 55% from the field and the 3 point line.




In the third game, George had a bad shooting night, but all players have those kind of nights. He shot 4-14 from the field and 1-8 from the 3-point line. Not the best but it could have been worse. The bright side is that he had 7 rebounds to go along with his 13 points. Despite putting up not-so-great numbers, the Pacers still won the game.

The fourth game was not the best night, but there was reason behind it. PG-13 only played 12 minutes in the game. It was obvious to see that he did play pretty good though since he had 13 points in those 12 minutes, which played a big part in the win against the Pistons. Paul George did show us his athleticism is still there when he finished an amazing alley-oop dunk. He also did great in isolation, which he showed a little bit of in this game.

In the most recent game, Paul George had a great 17 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists in the win against the Cleveland Cavaliers. George was showing off his passing skills in this game as he found his teammates beautifully. He did a little bit of everything in the game, showing us his outside, and inside game, as well as showing us his ball handling skills. This was probably his bet all-around game PG-13 has had.




So far Paul George seem to be improved and so does his team. He has shown that he can run the offense and he can find teammates. He has also shown a balance in scoring as 35.5 % of his points come from the 3 point line, but 25.8% come from the paint and 23.7% come from the FT line. He looks well improved in his shot and I think this will be one of Paul George's best seasons. With PG-13 on the team, developing player Glenn Robinson III, and new additions, Monta Ellis and Chase Budinger, I don't see a reason why the Pacers wouldn't make it to the playoffs.

Danilo Gallinari needs to play somewhere else

Danilo Gallinari scored 47 points in the loss against the Mavericks. The guy was knocking down threes, perfect from the free throw line, and shot 65% from the field. He is underrated and placed behind teammates Ty Lawson and Kenneth Faried. I honestly think Gallinari needs to request a trade. He is on one more year with this Nuggets team after this season. This is a guy who could do great on some teams. I will list them below.

3. The Pacers: With Paul George back, this team has a star. George Hill will be looking to pass and score. This team obviously is different now with Lance Stephenson gone though. They would really benefit from a three point shooter like Gallinari who could spread the floor.

2. The Hornets: This team didn't benefit with Stephenson but they would benefit with Gallinari. I honetly think a trade of Stephenson for Gallinari would be great. The Hornets could use some one coming off off-ball screens sizing up and spreading the floor. This would get guy like Kemba cutting and he could set screens to get people open.

1. Phoenix Suns: This could be the guy to get this team into the playoffs. He would help guys like Eric Bledsoe get off good shots and would work well with Brandon Knight. Gallinari would be able to knock down big threes. The Phoenix Suns struggle with end of game which they could use him for. He would come off curl screens from Markiff Morris to get open shots. This would be a great team for him.

Gallinari is averaging 12.3 PPG this season and I don't think that the Nuggets are using him properly with an immature PG, Ty Lawson. Gallinari would do better somewhere else. You can see he is being improperly used in the video as he is being isolated and not coming off screens. This is a prime example on why Gallinari would do better somewhere else. You think this is good, imagine what he could do somewhere else.