Pacers to wrap up roadie in Chicago after earning a split in L.A.

The Pacers are 3-1 on their current road trip with the one loss coming under painful circumstances.

On a west coast roadie of my own this week, so catching up now after the Pacers split their back-to-back games in LA, losing in annoying fashion to the Lakers on Sunday and then bouncing back for a rare W over the Clippers in the back-to-back situation.

The Pacers great start against the Lakers was washed away over the second and third quarters in a game I can’t defend when friends and family complain about NBA games being rigged. Well, rigged may be a little strong, but the ridiculous foul situation against the Lakers revealed concerns that have always impacted the Pacers in big games against big market and/or LeBron James-led teams.

The league just admitted to covertly having the refs alter their emphasis to stop rewarding offensive players for initiating contact and selling fouls. This is how the Pacers have been called much of the season, but leveling the emphasis across the league was a bonus for the Pacers.

Then, against the Lakers, it wasn’t. The gaudy foul numbers had the Pacers called for 31 fouls compared to 14 for the Lakers. Worse, the Lakers shot 43 free throws to the Pacers 16. Don’t bother looking at the actual fouls. Of course, you can make the case a call may have been appropriate no matter how much AD or LeBron sell the call. But that’s not how the game has been called elsewhere and that includes at the Pacers end of the floor. Again, the concern is not for this one regular season game, but for how the emphasis will be applied in the playoffs.

Sorry, but these types of fluctuations make it appear the league is picking winners.

Of course, the Lakers have to make their free throws to take advantage of the well, advantage. That they did against the Pacers, making 38 of 43 attempts. The Lakers rallied from behind to beat the Bucks on Tuesday night, shooting double the FTs but also cashing ‘em in by making 30 of 32 attempts. Despite the differential, Giannis missed late free throws which eventually lead to a 2OT loss for the Bucks.

OK, enough on that, but the situation is bugging me.

Against the Clippers, both teams shot 22 free throws so we can look toward the actual players for how the Pacers left town with a W. Pascal Siakam scored 31 points in 31 minutes on just 20 shots. The man was simply a beast on this trip and willing to get big buckets down the stretch and some high flying finishes which put Obi Toppin in interview mode.

But the highlight of the game was the impact Jarace Walker delivered off the bench. With the back-to-back situation and Aaron Nesmith out, Walker filled a reserve role and then seized extra minutes with his effort all over the court. He finished with 8 points and 7 assists, making all three of his shots including two from behind the arc. Walker continues to show his playmaking ability including off the bounce. The positionless wing potential was on full display against the Clips.

Photo: @Pacers

Also, the Hali-McConnell point guard duo delivered once, again with Haliburton making 6 of 9 threes to finish with 21 points while McConnell had his 15 points and 6 assists. It was TJ Mac’s seventh consecutive game scoring in double figures as he is now averaging what would be a career-high 9.6 points per game in 18 minutes per game.

The Pacers finish the road trip just up the road in Chicago on Wednesday night. The game will tip with the Pacers holding a 1.5 game lead over Miami for the sixth spot in the East. The Pacers will try to level the season series with the Bulls. TJ McConnell (ankle) joined Nesmith (knee) on the injury report as questionable.

Game Details

Where: United Center, Chicago, IL

When: Wednesday, Mar. 27, 2024, 8:00 p.m. ET

TV: Bally Sports

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

Odds: Pacers -2.5

Projected Starters

Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner

Bulls: Cody White, Ayo Dosunmu, Alex Caruso, DeMar DeRozan, Nikola Vucevic

Injuries

Pacers: TJ McConnell (ankle) - questionable, Aaron Nesmith (knee) - questionable, Bennedict Mathurin (shoulder)- out

Bulls: Alex Caruso (ankle) - questionable, Lonzo Ball (knee) - out, Zach LaVine (foot) - out, Julian Phillips (foot) - out, Patrick Williams (foot) - out