Well playas…the Indiana Pacers’ season is finally over…about five months later than normal but it was a good ride under the circumstances. After getting swept by the Miami Heat, Nate McMillan and Co. finally move into the offseason to get healthy.
Indiana did everything possible to be competitive this season despite being snake bitten. Without having Victor Oladipo until shortly before the pandemic suspended the season they managed to play well. They eventually finished the season as the No.4 seed in the East just ahead of Miami with a 45-28 regular season record.
However, they landed in the bubble without Jeremy Lamb and Domantas Sabonis who were both injured. Not having key players in the playoffs hurt them big time.
However, as we look at bright spots moving forward. You have to give Nate and his staff credit for playing as well as they did while managing those absences.
TJ Warren developed into a consistent scorer giving the Pacers a legitimate threat on the floor without Victor. Aaron Holiday has blossomed into a great player because of the amount of playing time he’s gotten in meaningful minutes.
Myles Turner continues to show growth at the center position which is his natural spot. People will say that you can’t use these examples as excuses but after it’s all said and done yes you can. Why? Because the BEST team always wins the best of seven series.
Miami was the better team in this situation. They had the bullets in the gun and was able to fire on all cylinders. They had Jimmy Butler. They had Goran Dragic. They had Bam Adebayo. They had Jae Crowder. They had Duncan Robinson.
Therefore, in the moment the best team wins. I applaud Nate for the job he’s doing in Indiana and I’m thankful that the Pacers organization extended his contract just before the playoffs began. He’s doing a helluva job of getting the best out of his team. They aren’t underachieving at all.
As a matter of fact, they are getting more out of what they have at this point. To sustain the injuries they’ve had and finish as the No.4 seed was a win, in and of itself. Get healthy and we’ll see you in the 2020-2021 season. Stop me when I start lyin’!
