They finally did it. They finally played a good, complete game against a competitive team. This was the best game that the Pacers have played all season and it is not even close. This was a test game and they passed it with flying colors. Sure the Heat win was a good one, but that game just felt sloppy on both sides and we were lucky to walk out of Gainbridge with a victory. This game felt competent from buzzer to buzzer and it was so satisfying to watch. I will not be lashing out at work today, and for the time being Esther’s cubicle is safe from me shot-putting the water cooler into it. There were a few scares, and the game wasn’t perfect, but this is what I have been expecting out of this team all season. I am a very happy boy.
This was the first game this season where we got to see Brogdon and Levert play alongside of one another and dare I say, it was awesome man. They are a really, really good backcourt. Levert is so good at scoring at all three levels. He can shoot 3’s off the dribble, or find a way to slither into the paint and launch a floater that the man above preordains to fall straight down through the hoop. It is so refreshing to watch, and it has been breathing a new life into this team. While he and Brogdon didn’t shoot a phenomenal combined percentage (46.6%) their offensive impact was felt all night. I am not sure why Brogdon didn’t just try to bully Kemba every possession to get to the basket, because it looked like Kemba was fresh out of answers whenever Malcolm put the ball on the floor.
My favorite part of this entire game is that we did not do the Indiana Pacers’ patented move, and blow the lead we had. They started the game with an 11–0 run over the Knicks and never looked back. There were a couple of occasions where the lead got cut down to 3 and then later 2. But you know what happened both times? Carlisle called a timeout, stopped the momentum, and the Pacers went back out and stuck their ground. We have not seen them do that all season, and it was what I have been desperately pleading the basketball gods to see. It puts so much confidence into this team and you absolutely love to see it.
But the real story of the night is obvious. Myles Turner had another offensive explosion tonight. It feels like Myles’ offensive performances are directly tied to wins and losses (minus the Washington game, yuck). If Myles’ is shooting the ball well and at high volume, the Pacers automatically become a much better team. It honestly feels like the difference between a lottery team and a playoff team. You know he is going to bring it on the defensive side every night and get his help defense blocks. But when you see those first couple of rainbow shots go up and scratch some asbestos off the ceiling, only to then fall straight through the net, you know that you are going to be in for a good game.
But, as I said earlier, it was not a perfect game. The Pacers still gave up 14 offensive rebounds to Knicks which kills. And Justin Holiday had a night that I am certain he will not put in a scrapbook. But all in all this was a fantastic win and hopefully one that we can build momentum off of. I will leave you with my TJ McConnell stat of the night: Tonight TJ had another 6 assists to go with 0 turnovers. That puts him at 23 assists with only 3 turnovers for his last 3 games, giving him a 7.66 A/TO ratio in that time. Fucking beautiful.
