Paul George isn’t walking through that door, and it doesn’t seem to matter in Indy.
The Indiana Pacers moved on from their best player in the off-season and, despite clear attempts to remain competitive in signing competent veterans, few predicted early success for the team. Part of that skepticism stemmed from a lack of top-end talent, as only young big man Myles Turner really inspired a great deal of confidence when it comes to presenting lofty ceiling outcomes in the near future. Fast-forward through one-third of the season, though, and the Pacers sit at 16-11 and seem destined to reach the postseason.
How did we get here? Well, for starters, the George trade looks much more defensible than it did five months ago. Victor Oladipo has been tremendous from the jump, averaging 24.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game while producing high-end efficiency and generally leading the Pacers to overall competence on both ends. In addition, the “other” part of the trade, Domantas Sabonis, has overachieved considerably when compared to preseason expectations and Indiana’s overall depth and veteran stability have combined to form a coherent formula that is more than enough to win games in the East.
The question, of course, is just how sustainable this might be and a brief look at the numbers indicates that it actually could continue at a similar level. Indiana is only slightly overachieving based on their positive net rating (one that indicates they “should” be sitting at 15-12 right now) and, even if the shooting for Oladipo and others cools in the future, there is enough depth to potentially fill in the gaps. From a roster standpoint, no one would confuse the Pacers with the Cavs, Celtics or even Raptors but is it inconceivable that Indiana could finish with comparable records to teams like the Bucks and Pistons? Absolutely not.
The remaining two-thirds of the campaign will be quite interesting on a number of levels but there is genuine optimism surrounding the Pacers right now and that was unforeseen just a short time ago. Where will Indiana stack up in this week’s power rankings? Let’s find out.
1. Golden State Warriors (22-6, Last week — 1st)
The Rockets are playing unbelievable basketball (we’ll get there) but, when the Warriors win seven straight games, they don’t vacate the top spot. Those are the rules. Stephen Curry’s injury situation isn’t ideal but, provided he comes back at full strength, it would be a mild surprise if Golden State didn’t run the table at No. 1 overall — also, Curry’s absence is reminding everyone how good Kevin Durant is.
2. Houston Rockets (21-4, Last week — 2nd)
James Harden is out of his mind and the Rockets got a career-best performance from Clint Capela to keep their 10-game winning streak churning on Monday evening. In any normal season, they’d be No. 1 with a bullet but, well, the Warriors exist. That shouldn’t diminish the ridiculousness of this start. The Rockets have been great and appear to be a genuine challenger to the throne occupied by Golden State.
3. Cleveland Cavaliers (19-8, Last week — 3rd)
Cleveland finally lost a basketball game as it ran into the buzzsaw that is Victor Oladipo. Aside from that, though, the Cavs have been lighting the world on fire and they are (still) playing the best basketball in the East.
4. San Antonio Spurs (19-8, Last week — 6th)
Kawhi Leonard is likely to return on Tuesday and all the Spurs have done is win eight of their last nine games without him. That seems like a pretty good recipe, even if some hiccups may occur during the reintegration process. It helps to have Gregg Popovich to navigate it all and, as a reminder, Leonard is very good at basketball.
5. Boston Celtics (23-6, Last week — 4th)
Losing by 23 points to the Bulls (yes, the Bulls) on Monday is not a great look for Boston. There would be a temptation to drop the Celtics more significantly but, to put it plainly, we can’t let one ghastly performance override just how good Boston has been to this point. If they do it again, they’ll probably see a more precipitous fall.
6. Toronto Raptors (17-8, Last week — 5th)
If not for a loss to the Clippers in their most recent contest (snapping a six-game winning streak), the Raptors would have vaulted the Celtics. There is no shame, though, in landing here and there is a fairly comfortable gap after the top six in the hierarchy. Toronto knows it must prove it in the playoffs but their style of play has been entertaining this season and that is no small thing.
7. Indiana Pacers (16-11, Last week — 8th)
This is probably too high but, I mean, how fun are the Pacers right now?
8. Minnesota Timberwolves (16-11, Last week — 13th)
There is something quite bothersome about Minnesota still being a bottom-five defensive team but it helps to be tremendous on the offensive end. The current formula is probably good enough to land the Wolves in the playoffs for the first time in a long while but it is certainly maddening.
9. Milwaukee Bucks (15-10, Last week — 14th)
Here come the Bucks. Milwaukee has won six of seven with the lone loss coming on the road in Boston. This is the team we expected to see, especially post-Eric Bledsoe trade, and they appear to be arriving as we speak. The top of the East will have to start taking notice soon.
10. Denver Nuggets (14-12, Last week — 12th)
Remember the gap we mentioned after the top six? Well, there is another one after No. 9 and before No. 10. From here, there is a muddled group of squads and we’re splitting hairs to place Denver in the top spot. The Nuggets aren’t playing particularly well but a team had to be here.
11. Washington Wizards (14-12, Last week — 16th)
Washington’s most recent road loss to the Clippers came under weird circumstances and, prior to that, the Wizards were finally displaying some signs of life. I tend to believe that the light is coming on but we’ll wait another week before really buying in to this inconsistent bunch.
12. New Orleans Pelicans (14-14, Last week — 17th)
New Orleans blew a double-digit second half lead to Houston on Monday. There is no great horror in that given, simply put, the Rockets are very good, but that win would have done wonders for the placement of the Pelicans in these rankings. That’s how the cookie crumbles.
13. Miami Heat (13-13, Last week — 18th)
It’s been a weird year for Miami but, after back-to-back wins, the Heat are back to .500 and that seems about right. Before those victories, Miami lost to the Spurs and Warriors. While those defeats are quite explainable, that might just be what this group is.
14. Portland Trail Blazers (13-13, Last week — 11th)
Normally, five straight losses would cost a team with Portland’s profile more than three spots but there is some mediocrity in this tier. It does help that the defeats came to playoff-caliber teams but, with four of the five coming at home, the pain is more significant.
15. Philadelphia 76ers (13-13, Last week — 9th)
There was always a likelihood of inconsistency from this young team and a run of four straight losses (including home defeats to the Lakers and Suns) certainly qualifies under that provision. It is difficult to doubt Philly’s talent but deciphering what this group actually is for the current moment is even more challenging.
16. Detroit Pistons (14-12, Last week — 10th)
As noted last week, we were already in the midst of a downturn and, since then, Detroit has lost three additional games to bring their losing streak to six. The sky isn’t necessarily falling given some of the shakiness in this same tier but the Pistons no longer look to be the absolute playoff lock that we may have thought two weeks ago.
17. Utah Jazz (13-14, Last week — 7th)
We were very excited about Utah last week, sending Quin Snyder’s team zooming up ten spots. With three straight losses, the Jazz now fall ten spots and order is restored to some extent. Good luck trying to figure this squad out at the moment.
18. Oklahoma City Thunder (12-14, Last week — 15th)
Speaking of teams that are impossible to figure out, we meet the Oklahoma City Thunder! Russell Westbrook and company recently completed a three-game stretch with wins over Minnesota, San Antonio and Utah. Since then, though, the Thunder have scuffled in spots that they shouldn’t and Carmelo Anthony blew off the media on Monday evening. Everyone is just guessing at this point.
19. New York Knicks (13-13, Last week — 19th)
The Knicks are the epitome of a .500 team. Before the season, that would be seen as a win so the New York faithful can take solace in that.
20. Los Angeles Clippers (10-15, Last week — 24th)
Back-to-back wins over Eastern Conference playoff squads! Granted, the Clippers lost four straight before that and there are serious problems but those kind of victories can provide some real momentum for the future and maybe Los Angeles isn’t quite buried yet.
21. Los Angeles Lakers (10-15, Last week — 27th)
It isn’t often that recent editions of the Lakers could rattle off back-to-back road wins but that is what this club just did. Granted, the victories came at the hands of Philadelphia and Charlotte but, in the same breath, neither were projected Los Angeles wins and over-achievement is never a bad thing.
22. Charlotte Hornets (10-16, Last week — 20th)
Dwight Howard and company rescued themselves from a precipitous fall with a double-digit win over Oklahoma City but it’s tough to place the Hornets ahead of the Lakers given the recent head-to-head result. Sometimes, things are simple.
23. Brooklyn Nets (10-15, Last week — 21st)
The Nets aren’t good but they really aren’t bad. Brooklyn has won three of five and a home win over Oklahoma City looks good on the resume, even amid the Thunder’s struggles.
24. Memphis Grizzlies (8-19, Last week — 26th)
Memphis was 7-4. Memphis is now 8-19. Math is difficult for some, but this calculation is pretty easy. What a mess.
25. Orlando Magic (11-17, Last week — 22nd)
Orlando’s only win this week came over Atlanta and, within the same sequence, the Magic also lost to the hapless Hawks. Injuries to Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier play a part but things aren’t going particularly well at the moment for the Magic men.
26. Dallas Mavericks (7-20, Last week — 23rd)
This week was never going to end well for Dallas. After a huge gain in our last rankings, the Mavs faced the Celtics, Bucks and Wolves on the same road trip. Three losses later… here we are again.
27. Phoenix Suns (9-19, Last week — 25th)
Phoenix has played better than their third-worst net rating would indicate but a stretch of five losses in six games limits their upward mobility a bit. This skid is a reminder of the real issues taking place with this Suns team and only some real futility keeps them from dropping a bit further.
28. Chicago Bulls (6-20, Last week — 30th)
I don’t know how to say this but… the Bulls have won three basketball games in a row. No, I don’t think this is much of a sign of things to come but Chicago is no longer in sole possession of the league’s worst record and that is cause for a two-spot bump.
29. Sacramento Kings (8-18, Last week — 28th)
A recent road win over the Pelicans is enough to keep the Kings from No. 30 overall (we’ll get there) but it is hard to look beyond the brutal peripherals here. There is buzz that George Hill and some of the vets in Sacramento aren’t exactly enjoying themselves and it is tough to blame them.
30. Atlanta Hawks (6-20, Last week — 29th)
The Hawks have exactly one victory over a team with a winning record this season and it came on Nov. 5. To be fair, Atlanta would likely be favored over Chicago (and maybe a few more teams) on a neutral floor but the Bulls’ recent surge sends this particular squad to the basement.
