Pacers drop another game at the Fieldhouse, now hit the road for March Madness
The Pacers are now 1-3 in their last four games at the Fieldhouse. Maybe another road trip will do them well.
Despite a rare great start to their game against the Cavs on Monday night, the Pacers were unable to make the good times last past the second quarter, eventually losing, 108-103.
There was a time when holding an opponent to 108 points was a pipe dream for the this Pacers team. Unfortunately, those were the days, a few months ago, filled with high octane offensive numbers and easy 245+ over/unders.
But this is a different team, one with a much better defensive disposition which is working even better since the NBA referee emphasis has shift in favor of more physical play. That same emphasis isn’t helping the offense which has naturally slowed down since incorporating Pascal Siakam at the same time Tyrese Haliburton is going through an absolutely brutal poor shooting stretch.
The excuses or potential impact on Haliburton’s current slump have been lined up all over the internet, but whether you blame the injury, missing Buddy, too much All-Star fun, too much effort early in the IST run, Team USA work or figuring out how to play with Siakam, the fact is, Haliburton is moving around quite well of late.
Rick Carlisle is a process guy and mentioned on The Fan that Tyrese may not be stepping into his shot lately compared to earlier in the year. But Carlisle also said Hali is not injured and there is no consideration of giving him some rest. Working through the clunky process the team is going through now is more important than any rest. With all of the recovery work these guys do, it is hard to consider things that have happened over the past six or seven months having the big impact. There are plenty of stars around the league carrying a similar work load from Team USA on.
Hopefully, the burden of slipping out of All-NBA contention isn’t also weighing on Haliburton. While he has a max deal locked up, letting the super max slip away would be hard not to think about when things are going the wrong way. Regardless, it seems like Haliburton has a lot on his mind which he needs to clear out to get going, again.
Maybe Haliburton should shut out the public on social media. Not sure these younger players can make that happen, a la LeBron in the playoffs, but it sure seems like Haliburton hears all of the stupid noise out there regarding his game.
Haliburton himself went in depth on attacking the shooting slump and dealing with the mental side of the work to get right, as James Boyd reported. As is easy to see in his pre-game workouts, Haliburton puts in the work, enjoys putting in the work which makes it easy to agree that he will find a heater soon and move his way back toward the 40 percent 3-baller he’s always been.
But the current 3 for 24 stretch in the last three games has been a big problem as the team’s 3PT % has tumbled. They remain a top ten 3PT % team for the season, but over the last 10 games, rank 28th in the league at 31%. No McBuckets, no Mathurin who had been shooting well, and of course, no more Buddy has altered the options beyond the arc which certainly has put more pressure on Haliburton as the focal point of every defense.
Carlisle also discussed the defense today and mentioned how during those great offensive days, they knew the good times were not sustainable without finding a way to defend better. The work in December to address the D got a boost from adding Siakam and right now the defense is playing plenty well to sustain success.
Now they just need the offense to come around (and soon!) to become a potent threat again on any night. Much of that will rely on Haliburton finding his way since he is still leading the way to make plays on all of the critical clutch time possessions. Leaning more on Siakam would surely help. Against the Cavs, Siakam played the first three minutes and last three minutes of the fourth quarter, but only took one shot (made midrange) in the first three minute stint but none in the closing three minutes. Not enough clutch time for a guy who can do some heavy lifting when it matters most.
The Pacers are off on a five-game road trip as they turn over the Fieldhouse to the first two rounds of the NCAA Men’s Tournament. First stop is in Detroit where the Pistons appear to be solidifying their spot in the bottom three of the league while also getting plenty of reps for Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey together. As for the rest of the roster, the glut of hamstring injuries seems to be solid work by the training team to keep the Pistons in that bottom three.
Game Details
Where: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI
When: Wednesday, Mar. 20, 2024, 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: Bally Sports
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers -9
Projected Starters
Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner
Pistons: Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Stanley Umude, S, Troy Brown Jr., Jalen Duren
Injuries
Pacers: Doug McDermott (calf) - questionable, Bennedict Mathurin (shoulder)- out
Pistons: Simone Fontecchio (hammy) - questionable, Taj Gibson (hammy) - questionable, Quentin Grimes (knee) - out, Isaiah Stewart (hammy) - out, Ausar Thompson (illness) - out
I thought Carlisle made a mistake at the end of the game. He took out the player who was playing the best at that time - Obi Toppin. He was rebounding, passing and defending very well. A noticeable drop in energy left the team when he left and the Cavs took advantage and pulled away.