Pacers still win-less without Oladipo
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
(Photo by Pacers Sports and Entertainment)
INDIANAPOLIS — The injury report hasn’t been too kind to the Indiana Pacers this season. And on Monday night against the Washington Wizards, they were without Victor Oladipo (illness), Darren Collison (knee), and Glenn Robinson III (ankle). The result- a 111-102 loss at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
For the season, the Pacers are 0-6 when Oladipo is sidelined, compared to 30-19 when he plays.
Even so, injuries are a part of the game, and the Pacers will have continue fighting at less than full strength. Darren Collison is expected to miss 2-3 weeks, while GR3 isn’t expected back until after the All-Star break.
The Washington Wizards have won five straight games without John Wall, and are 10-6 overall on the season when he’s been out.
Bradley Beal and the short-handed #Wizards topped the short-handed #Pacers. Beal finished with 21 points. This was Washington’s 5th straight win & the first time they’ve won 4 in a row against Indiana since 1983-84. Here’s Beal on playing without Wall (1 of 2): pic.twitter.com/lTdlW2Lcy3
— Corey Elliot (@CoreyElliot) February 6, 2018
“I can’t speak for Washington and how they’ve played without Wall,” said Pacers Coach Nate McMillan. “They do have Beal over there. Vic opens up a lot of things for us.”
On the bright side for Indiana, Joe Young stepped up in a big way in Collison’s absence. He scored 17 points and made 5-of-8 from behind the arc.
“It’s a big opportunity,” Young said. “I feel like I have to bring what he (Collison) brought, and just continue to bring it until he gets back. And I think I can do that.”
It will be interesting to see if Nate McMillan inserts Young into the starting lineup after this one
The Pacers also received a huge effort from Bojan Bogdanovic. He scored a game-high 29 points and made 5-of-7 from deep.
Bogdanovic after his 29-point night and loss to Washington pic.twitter.com/8I4e7GKFJd
— Tyler Smith (@TylerSmith_ISL) February 6, 2018
One player that has really struggled in Oladipo’s absence is Thad Young. In those six games, Young is averaging just 8.2 points per game while shooting just 38%.
When asked about chemistry of certain lineups, Nate McMillan didn’t take the bait. “We’re in February,” he said. “Chemistry is supposed to be there regardless of who’s on the floor. Just no execution tonight.
Myles Turner had another rough night, scoring just six points on only five shot-attempts. He was once again plagued with foul trouble and only played 22 minutes.
“He’s been in a lot of foul trouble,” said McMillan. “It’s hard to get in a rhythm when he’s on the bench.”
With a few tough road games coming up this week (New Orleans and Boston), the Pacers hope to have Victor Oladipo back, and they hope to put this loss behind them.
