Indiana Season Review: The WTF Season

[TheTwoWallaces]

This was supposed to be the coming out season for the Indiana Pacers. In my 4th season at the realm, we felt like we finally had the pieces and the formula to play winning CSL basketball. Ojeleye & Patton were ready, Mika was resigned, Hayes had another year of development under his belt, and our backcourt featured an array of utility pieces that could hold their own. The greatest hurdle was going to be the quality of the East. After floating just below .500 the last two seasons 40 and 37 wins), this season there was no reason not to expect a jump above the mid-mark. Also, we had Washington's pick, which had a good shot at being a Top 3 pick.

So what on earth happened....

Well, in what seems to be a CSL tradition, we started out hot out of the gate. We were going toe-to-toe with the biggest baddest boys in the East while making good work of the CSL lottery teams. 4 weeks into the season and we were 18-9. Playoffs for sure.

And then, just like that, without a single tweak, the shots literally stopped going in the basket. The CSL random bug or maybe not the best coaching (what do I know), said enough was enough. We immediately started to lose everything. We'd score 68 points in a game, we'd lose to the Magic at home, we'd lose in OT. EVERYTHING.

Eric Mika was one of many Pacers who started off hot then lost his groove.

In frustration, the office traded away Jae Crowder. He wasn't playing particularly poorly, but we wanted something new and maybe something younger, because maybe this wasn't the moment to go all.

2/3rds the way through the season we stabilized around .550. Good enough to stay in the playoffs, but we were still so shaky. The defense was good, players were doing their jobs, people just weren't making shots anymore.

Anyway, to close out the season, we needed to keep pace with Philly and Boston. Of course, this was then the moment that the Celtics became THE hottest team in the CSL, and I think finished the season like 15-3 or something. It was absurd, and we could not keep up. With 4 games left, we were still within striking distance of Philly. But we were never going to get hot enough to finish the job.

So, we broke .500 which was our goal. But in the silly East, that doesn't mean anything. So at 44-38 we were 2 games out of the playoffs.

But hey! The Wizards had a disastrous campaign and we had the 2nd highest lottery odds! Surely good news is on the way!

Rumors had been circulating all year that this was a weak draft, which was worrisome. And then our scouts could not find a single noteworthy Point Guard. Not a single Guard, even! Mammia Mia!! Lottery night came, and we fell 4 spots to #6. So, not only did we miss the playoffs, trade away MVP Candidate Michael Porter, but now we just have the 6th pick in a weak draft with no guards available. Welp, I guess we will draft another do-it-all-forward and see if having 5 of those is a recipe for winning basketball. Surely!

Ojeleye had another rock-solid season. He's becoming an all-time Pacer great, if only he could play in the playoffs someday.

Nah, but all sassiness aside, it wasn't a disastrous season for us. We showed we are a +.500 team in the Conference of Death, and we do have a high pick. I love the core of this squad and it's been a lot of fun to construct, so hopefully next season is our year. The bad luck has to end someday, right?

[Flaming Homer]

A rough season indeed.
That team is indeed an enigma. Going so hot and cold almost every season is weird.

I like the overall talent of the team but still think the guard rotation is subpar in a conference with so much star power. But your hot starts show that the team in general is able to play on a high level.
Really hard to say where I would go from here. It will be in the playoffs during the next seasons, some teams like the Hawks will fall out but to challenge the top4 teams is a different matter.

[Marcos_Beck]

The East just isn’t for amateurs lol

44-38 almost guaranteed you a playoff spot at any given moment but this year it wasn’t enough. Only trending upwards though for the Pacers, but you need to fix that backcourt ASAP and this year’s draft doesn’t seem to be the solution honestly, I can really see 6 front court players in the top 6 or so.

Still there will be more talent for the Pacers next season, that along Hayes’ endurance boost should make this team better, not sure if that will be enough in the East, but…

[hardenwithnod]

Should have traded that pick back to me! In all seriousness, this team had a good season, it's just unfortunate that you didn't have time to micromanage, and the East is just ridiculous in general lol.

[Andrewu91]

Make them the LA Pacers and switch conferences

[blackice]

I love your core and you've been patient with your assets and are making forward progress every season. Curious to see what happens with the pick as this isn't a strong PG class but between FA/trades I could see this team making a leap next season and making the playoffs. I view this team as a similar setup to MIL who rebuilt very slowly and are now a powerhouse.

[bt]

That's the tough thing about those types of picks. Cash in when value is high or sometimes it just plays out like this.

You guys have some serious talent though and I could see pick 6 being moved to help that cause. I'm excited about Thybulle entering his 3rd season and I'm guessing you feel that way about Hayes also

[mgtr81]

Having a player like Hayes is a great foundation. I may be old school but that rebounding-blocking center who does not subtract in offense is one of the highest value pieces a team can have.