Indiana Pacers power rankings update: Pacers fall slightly in most recent rankings

Not counting Monday's victory over Atlanta, since it occurred after most sites released their rankings, the Indiana Pacers had a below .500 week, meaning most sites showed the Pacers falling in their power rankings.

First, we'll check in with Marc Stein over at ESPN. Last week, Stein had Indiana at 5, but this week he dropped Indiana down to 9.

Here's what Stein had to say:

Frank Vogel is probably not going to win Coach of the First Trimester honors when our selections are released later this week because the field is too dang deep. But we can't say enough about Vogel's role in changing Indy's identity on the fly, especially with marquee offseason acquisition Monta Ellis not exactly making a splash so far.

Next, we'll take a look at Scott Davis over at Business Insider. Their rankings were released on Wednesday afternoon, so they also reflect Indy's win over Atlanta on Monday night. Davis has the Pacers at 8.

Here's what Davis had to say:

As we predicted in November, the Pacers have cooled off. They've gone 7-7 in December while Paul George has shot 36% from the field and 34.5% from three, down from 47.7% and 49.5% in November.

Moving on to take a look at Matt Moore at CBS Sports. Moore puts the Pacers at 7, which is 2-spot fall from his rankings last week.

Here's what Moore had to say:

After a spectacular November, their December has been decidedly worse (15th in offense, 17th in defense). Turns out "Paul George being a super-volcano" was not a sustainable strategy. They play five Eastern Conference playoff contenders between now and January 6. They're 12-4 vs. the East going in. Let's see where they're at when they come out.

Now, we'll take a look at Jeremy Woo over at Sports Illustrated. Woo drops the Pacers to 8. He had Indiana at 5 in his previous rankings.

Here's what Woo had to say:

It's been a rough week or so for the Pacers, who broke a three-game losing streak with a big fourth quarter against the Timberwolves. They're heavily dependent on Paul George, who's shot under 30% over the past four games, and need to get things clicking again with dates against the Hawks, Bulls and Pistons coming up.

Lastly, we'll check in with Tim Bontemps at the Washington Post. Bontemps has the Pacers at 8, which is a 3-spot fall from last week.

Here's what Bontemps had to say:

Reality check: While there has been some doubt about Indiana's ability to keep its hot start up all season, one thing that should make it possible is the team's strong three-point shooting. Through the opening two months of the season the Pacers are fourth in the NBA in three-point percentage (37.2 percent).

The Pacers battle the Bulls tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on FOX Sports Indiana.