Pacers will look to “scratch out some wins” when the season starts next week
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
INDIANAPOLIS — In one week, it’s go-time for the Indiana Pacers. As exciting and refreshing as it will be to start the season, the Pacers have a daunting task ahead of them with a brutal opening schedule. Combine that with a new coaching staff and the typical Pacer injury problems, and you’re looking at an incredibly challenging beginning.
“We Grow Basketball Here” is the team slogan, but if I had a vote, I’d change it to “Just survive until December.”
Take a look, if you dare, at the first 23 games on Indy’s schedule this year:
Not even Ted Lasso could put a positive spin on the pre-December match-ups. The good news? Things change dramatically once November ends. In December- The Pacers are at home for 10 of their 13 games. Another bit of good news? Head Coach Rick Carlisle has been here before.
“We had the same thing last year in Dallas,” Carlisle said. “We had the second hardest schedule in the first few months. Towards the end of January we were in 14th place in the West. We hung in and kept fighting. And when the favorable part of our schedule hit, we were able to slug through. We’re going to have to understand, the difficulty of it will have to be one of the things that brings us together. As tough as our schedule is early, if we’re efficient and play together, we can scratch out our fair share of wins.”
This won’t be something Pacer fans want to hear, but my honest target for Pacers wins before December is probably around 10. If they can start the season at 10-13, and start to finally get healthy as the schedule flips, that would put them in a decent enough position to make some noise later in the year. Anything more than 10 would be great. Anything less would make things difficult.
Before Wednesday’s preseason game, Rick Carlisle said he expects Malcolm Brogdon to play in the season opener next week. We will continue to wait on news pertaining to T.J. Warren and Caris LeVert. Having even one of those guys would go a long way in the Pacers pursuit of “scratching out their fair share of wins.”
Perspective will be needed from fans (which is no simple task itself.) Don’t expect a great start to the season, but don’t let a mediocre start derail all your hopes either. No matter what happens, it’s going to be great having Pacers basketball and the great Pacer fans back together again.
