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Overall
Win/Loss Record : 42-24 second place
Central Division
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Last Season’s Rank
6
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Projected 2012/2013
Finish
2
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Last
season’s Team Statistics and League Rank
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Returning
Individual Statistical Leaders
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Projected Starters Based on Last Season’s Performance, Veteran Seniority and Projected Impact
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Key Reserves Based on Last Season’s Performances, Veteran Seniority and Potential Impact.
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2012/2013
Projection: 59-23 first place in the
Central Division—the Miami Heat needs to be afraid, be very afraid.
Analysis:
Last season the
Indiana Pacers were just two games away from ripping the hearts out of South
Beach hoops fans, sending Lebron and company back home sulking, and coach Erik Spoelstra from looking for a new job.
Grabbing that two games to one lead certainly had the media buzzing as
they questioned whether or not Lebron James had the goods to lead Miami to
its second NBA title. Unfortunately
for Pacers fans, Lebron and company proved their doubters wrong as they won
the next three games clinching the series in splendid fashion. Pacer fans were then left with asking
themselves “what if?” had they managed to pull of the impossible and defeated
the mighty Miami Heat. Now with a
completely revamped roster thanks to a rather busy offseason, the Pacers have
given their fans even more optimism; add the fact that next season, their
team are in the ideal situation as they have the perfect scenario not only
take the Eastern Conference crown but also an even better chance to usurp the
Heat to represent the East in the NBA Finals.
To start off, this
upcoming season has given the Indiana the ideal opportunity to completely
dominate their own Central Division as they will have little if any
competition whatsoever. Their biggest
divisional rival, the Chicago Bulls, will come into the season with a weaker
roster than before and will be playing most of the season without their star
Derrick Rose. The Bulls with their
diminished roster will probably finish at best a distant second to Indiana
while the rest of the teams in the Central Division will not be even worth
mentioning. Both the Detroit Pistons
and Cleveland Cavaliers are projected to be perennial bottom feeders of the
Eastern Conference while the Milwaukee Bucks continue to walk that thin line
teetering between being average and mediocre.
Add the welcomed new additions to the roster, the Pacers also will
start the season with one of the deepest and most talented rosters in the
league.
Very few teams, if
any, can boast a roster that is ten players deep who have the ability to
start on any NBA team; however, the Pacers managed to do so by upgrading
their already strong lineup with even more size and talent. They started by trading away the
disappointing starting point guard Darren Collison along with swingman
Dahntay Jones to the Dallas Mavericks for up and coming young big man Ian
Mahinimi. Mahinimi came off a career
season with the Mavs averaging close to six points and five rebounds per game
along with shooting .548 from the field—producing that all in less than 20
minutes per game. He will be backing
up the Pacers’ All Star, Roy Hibbert, whom Indiana resigned to a long term
extension this past summer. Add them
with the power forward tandem of David West and Tyler Hansbrough, Indiana has
assembled one of the strongest toughest and most physical front courts in the
league.
In addition to their
rather imposing front court, the Pacers also made a couple of low key moves
that will make them an even stronger force to be reckoned with in the
NBA. They picked up DJ Augustin, who
was cast aside by the Charlotte Bobcats as they declined on tending him a
qualifying offer making him an unrestricted free agent. Although he played on the team with the
worst record in NBA history, Augustin posted solid numbers last season
averaging 11 points and six assists.
He will certainly be an improvement from Darren Collison who had one
of the lowest averages for assists per game for a starting point guard in the
league. The Pacers also adding the
high flying Gerald Green who made an amazing comeback after his disappointing
first stint in the NBA coming to the league straight out of high school. Originally arriving as late season pickup
from the then New Jersey Nets, Green exploded off the bench averaging close
to 13 points, four rebounds and a steal per game while shooting .481 from the
field in a little over 25 minutes of playing time.
With the four new
additions to the Pacers lineup, the Miami Heat should be more than a little
concerned. Here comes the same team
that almost eliminated them in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals last season
with a much improved lineup who can cause even more problems defensively to
Lebron James and company. Armed with
the defense first mantra and blue collar attitude instilled by coach Frank Vogel, Indiana has the chance to unseat the Miami Heat from its rather huge
pedestal to attain the crown that has always alluded them—an NBA Championship
trophy. In fact, one can go as far to
say that with the current state of the league, Indiana is probably the only
team in the league that is a match for the Miami Heat—not the Los Angeles Lakers, Oklahoma City Thunder, nor the San Antonio Spurs. All the other teams do not hold a candle
next to the Heat, save for the Pacers as they are by default, the only
obstacle that stands in the Heat’s way for a second consecutive NBA title.
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Tuesday, September 25, 2012
SDH's 2012/2013 NBA Worst to First Previews and Predictions: 2. Indiana Pacers
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