| Stumbling Into The New Year Authored by Andrew Perna - January 3, 2008 - 6:00 pm
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Hopefully 2008 will be a different story.
Here’s what I predicted for Indiana at the beginning of the season for December:
Things start to get much tougher as winter draws closer. Indiana has nine road games in December, and all but one of their five home games are against playoff contenders. It’s not too ambitious of a goal, but the Pacers should aim to get out of this month without suffering more than ten losses. They will have to play their hardest in the middle of the month not to fall into a lengthy losing streak, especially with the likes of Phoenix, Cleveland, Chicago, Toronto and Miami on the bill. Sadly, more than a handful of wins would be surprising.
Projected Record: 6–9.
For the second straight month Indiana was just one game off on my preseason prediction. Indiana finished the month 7-8, despite losing four consecutive games to end December. In addition to their four-game slide, the Pacers also had a three-game win streak, which in the end saved them a tremendous amount of face.
Three Straight Seesaws
Indiana began the month of December with three sets of alternating wins-and-losses. They avenged their first loss of the season, which came against the Clippers on Nov. 7, with a 101-95 victory in Los Angeles to open the month. They followed that up with a tough loss to the Suns, 121-117, in which Jermaine O’Neal notched 30 points and 11 rebounds.
The Pacers then beat the surging Magic on the road, thanks to 27 points from Danny Granger, before falling to the Cavaliers in an embarrassing defensive performance. They completed their trio of seesaws with a win over the struggling Bulls and a loss to the Raptors.
Three Straight Wins
Things started to click for Indiana around the middle of the month, as they took on the Heat, Knicks and 76ers. They kicked off their three-game win streak with a 106-103 victory in Miami, as Tinsley and O’Neal combined to score fifty points.
They followed that up with a 119-92 drubbing of the Knicks, who seemed to lie down and die for Indiana in the second half. Mike Dunleavy exploded for 36 points against New York, invoking Reggie Miller references at Madison Square Garden. The Pacers kept their hot streak going with a 102-85 win over the 76ers two nights later. Marquis Daniels stared in the victory over Philadelphia, scoring 26 points on 11-for-16 shooting.
Dropping Five Of Six
After winning seven of their first eleven games in December, the Pacers dropped five of their last six. Most embarrassing was their 131-118 loss to the Timberwolves, who have owned the NBA’s worst record for a majority of the season. Indiana rebounded with a 93-85 win over the Wizards, but the worst was yet to come.
They lost their final four games of 2007, by an average of 8.8 points.
The streak began with a 107-95 loss to the surging Hawks. All five of Atlanta’s starters reached double-digits in scoring, as the Hawks outrebounded the Pacers by a considerable margin. Indiana then dropped a pair of games against the Detroit Pistons, who at one point appeared to be their bitter rival. The Pistons drubbed the Pacers 114-101 in Detroit, before beating Indiana 98-92 at Conseco Fieldhouse to compete the home-and-home sweep.
The Pacers had a decent shot at ending the year with a victory, but stumbled against the Bobcats. Charlotte needed a huge fourth quarter to force overtime against Indiana on New Years’ Eve, and took over in the extra period – winning 107-103.
The gimpy hamstring of Tinsley, which held him out of the team’s final two games, no doubt altered Indiana’s record towards the end of the month. If he doesn’t return to the court healthy before long, January could be a very long stretch for the Pacers.
Preseason January Preview
The New Year won’t be kind to the Pacers. Once again they face nine road games, against just five home contests. They will have to protect their home court if they want to enter the All-Star break in the East’s playoff race. A five-game West Coast road trip against the Lakers, Jazz, Suns, Kings and Warriors will define the month. They have another road trip at the end of the month, a four-game ride on the Eastern side of the Mississippi. Wins in Philadelphia, Milwaukee and Miami would put Indiana in good shape heading into the midpoint of the season.
Projected Record: 6–8
Are the Pacers a lock for the lottery, the postseason or neither? Andrew.Perna@RealGM.com |
