10 Thoughts: Pacers crush Hawks, extend winning streak to 6
10 Thoughts: Pacers crush Hawks, extend winning streak to 6
Dissecting how the Pacers strung together another historic night against the Atlanta Hawks.
With the Pacers scheduled to play the top 2 teams in the East in 4 of the first 5 games of the year, their game against Atlanta being sandwiched in between Milwaukee and Boston felt like the proverbial trap game. The Hawks are a team that can get going offensively behind the play of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. This game was a big test for the Pacers.
All season long we’ve seen Indiana play down to the level of their competition after a big win against an upper echelon team in the East. It’s easy to do in an 82-game season, but teams that want to separate themselves from the middle of the pack have to win these types of games. The good news is, Indiana did just that by defeating the Hawks 150-116. It was all Pacers from start to finish.
Here are my 10 thoughts on this game:
1). Pacers set franchise record for more assists in a game with 50
What a special moment from the Pacers as a team. Indiana made 60 shots in this game and 50 of them were assisted on. Not only is this a Pacers franchise record, but a team dishing out 50 assists in a game has only happened once since 1990.
The 50 assists Indiana had in the game led to 117 points being scored. If Indiana didn’t make any of their free throws and missed the other 10 shots, they made that weren’t assisted on, they still would’ve outscored the Hawks 117-116. It was a great display of how playing as a team goes a long way and it starts with Indiana’s star, Tyrese Haliburton.
2). 18 assists for Haliburton in 25 minutes
Speaking of Tyrese Haliburton, the league leader in assists was on full display again. In just 25 minutes of action, Haliburton was whipping the ball around the court and finding the open man for buckets. His 18 assists led to 39 points. Here is a deeper look into where those assists came from: 7 in the restricted area (right at the rim), 5 in the midrange, 3 in the paint and 3 from three.
Haliburton dished 10 of his 18 assists to Myles Turner for 22 points. He found Nesmith 4 times for 9 points. Then he connected with Jalen Smith 3 times for 6 points and found Bruce 1 time for 2 points. All of Haliburton’s assists were to the starters, none to the bench.
Haliburton leads the league in assists with 12.8 per game and is just 2 shy of reaching 400 assists for the season. Mark Jackson still holds the franchise record for most assists made in a season with 713, but Haliburton is over halfway there with 48 games left to play. If Haliburton plays in the remaining 48 games, he will only need to average 6.6 assists a game to break Jackson’s record.
As for now, Haliburton has played in 31 of the 34 games. Haliburton is on pace to finish with 1,012 assists if he continues averaging 12.8 per game over the next 48 games. That finish would be the 9th most assists in a regular season. John Stockton has 6 of the top 8 assists seasons in NBA history, but I have a feeling Haliburton will be creeping into that conversation by the end of his career.
PS: Over the last 5 games, Haliburton has EIGHTY-FOUR assists and just 6 turnovers…just insane.
3). Turner’s Thrilling 3rd Quarter
In the 3rd quarter, Myles Turner went 7-8 from the field for 17 points. This is the first time in his career to score 17 points in a quarter. Turner has had 16-point quarters 3 different times in his career and 15-point quarters 6 different times in his career as well.
It’s fun to see Myles on full display when he is cashing in shots. His touch has improved over the last few years, and he is able to score in a variety of ways. Turner has stated time and time again that defense is his main focus, but when he pours it in offensively, it makes Indiana that much more difficult to defend.
Turner finished the game with a team high 27 points in 22 minutes. He shot 10-14 from the field (71.4%), he collected 5 rebounds, dished out 3 assists, stole the ball once and also had a rejection to start the game. Turner tied 3 other players with a team high +25 in the plus-minus category.
4). 8 players reach double figures in scoring
While Turner was absolutely fantastic, it was once again a collective effort that helped the Pacers get going. 8 players reached double figures in scoring and then Jarace Walker (8 points) and Obi Toppin (9 points) were just 1 made field goal away from being a part of the double-digit scoring club.
Turner obviously led the way with 27 points, Mathurin had 18, Brucey B finished with 17, Nesmith had 15, Hield and Stix scored 11 and Haliburton and McConnell each had 10. Brown was most efficient with this group as he went 8-9 from the field. The only players to shoot under 50% that scored double digits was Buddy Hield who went 4-9. This was a terrific effort and the Pacers improved to 3-0 when 8 players score in double figures.
5). The defense holds up despite the offensive explosion
The Atlanta Hawks are 6th in the NBA in offensive rating. With the roster they currently have assembled, it is built to be more dominant on the offensive side of the basketball compared to being a lock down defensive unit. Indiana’s offense was in full force Friday, but that didn’t distract them from playing good defense. It would have been easy to take the foot off the gas and allow for the defense to have lapses, but the Pacers did the opposite.
Indiana started the game off playing with physicality, something that has been a reoccurring trend with Smith and Nesmith in the starting lineup. They also did a solid job of defending without fouling. This has been a problem for the Pacers early on in the season, but it is something they are working on fixing. After the game, Coach Carlisle praised his team’s efforts of defending without fouling against Atlanta.
The Pacers held Atlanta to just 43% from the field and 23.8% from three. A solid effort and the 6th time the Pacers have kept an opponent under 120 points over the last 9 games.
6). Another bench beatdown
The Pacers reserves outscored the Hawks reserves 70-43. This is no surprise to anyone that has watched the Pacers closely, because Indiana leads the NBA in bench scoring with 49.5 points per game. Even with all the lineup shuffling the Pacers have done, the bench continues to be a strength for this Pacers group and a major reason why they are 20-14.
Atlanta has the 12th best bench scoring in the NBA, averaging 35.3 points per game, behind the play of veteran guard Bogdan Bogdanovic. Bogdanovic leads the NBA in bench scoring racking up 528 points this season for an average of 17.7 points per game. He was able to score 16 points on the Pacers, but it took him 14 shots to do so. Indiana held him to just 1-9 shooting from 3 and nobody else picked up the slack.
Indiana’s first 5 off the bench combined for 50 points and the 3rd string added 20 points. The first 5 drilled 8 three pointers and went a combined 19-32 from the field.
It was great to see guys who don’t normally get a chance to see the floor play for the majority of the 4th. The 3 J’s and Shep have been terrific teammates despite not being in the rotation. They played pretty solid together with McConnell as the floor general.
7). Aaron Nesmith injuries ankle in 3rd quarter
With the Pacers getting close to pulling their starters for the rest of the game, Aaron Nesmith crashed the glass on an offensive rebound and turned his ankle when landing. Nesmith was able to walk off on his own power to the locker room but did not return. The worst part about being up by 30-points in a blowout game is the fear of someone getting hurt. This is why you usually see coaches pull their starters, as they don’t want a freak accident to happen.
Indiana would like to have Nesmith available for Boston on Saturday, a team that he played well against in early December. Boston’s lengthy wings are tough to guard, so having Nesmith available to defend Tatum and Brown will be huge. If he is unable to go, the Pacers will have a tough decision to make.
Andrew Nembhard missed his 2nd game in a row against Atlanta, but if he is able to go, that does help Indiana’s ability to defend Tatum and Brown. While there is a drastic size difference, Nembhard is a smart and capable defender who would likely get the start if Nesmith can’t go. Both Nembhard and Nesmith are listed as questionable for Boston’s game, but the Pacers best chances to win are if both are healthy.
8). Jarace Walker plays entire 4th quarter
It has been a whirlwind for Jarace Walker as of late, as he continues to go back and forth from the Pacers to the Mad Ants to get playing time and reps. With Walker out of the Pacers normal rotation, the organization is trying to give him in-game reps to develop his game while he isn’t seeing the floor for the Pacers.
In the 12 minutes that he played he was a 0 in the plus-minus, went 3-6 from the field and made 2 three pointers, which is the first time he has made 2 in one game this season. Walker got lost defensively a handful of times in this game, but as he continues to grow in that area, it is a good learning tool for him moving forward.
Walker has done well in the G-League and was named to the All-Showcase Team at the end of December. He averaged 21.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 3 games played. For the season, Jarace is averaging 25.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists and shooting 50% from the field, 37% from 3 and 72.2% from the free throw line.
After playing solid in Minnesota, I felt as if Jarace was going to be given a chance to stay in the rotation. Rick Carlisle made a tough decision but thought it was best from him and Sheppard to attend the Winter Showcase in Orlando to further develop his game. He had 2 solid games and then had an underwhelming performance in the Championship against the Westchester Knicks.
Patience is key with Jarace’s development, but you can already see growth from him this season. He could be a pivotal part of this team’s future at the four position, but with Indiana focused on winning now, it will be a while until he is consistently in the rotation.
9). Can’t spell travesty without Trae
Pardon the poor attempt at a joke here, but what a poor performance from Hot-lanta’s star, Trae Young. Trae was a team worst, -28 in the game and he couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn. He went 1-11 from three, 4-18 from the field, had a 2-1 assist to turnover ratio and couldn’t guard anyone.
Trae is a skilled offensive player but at this moment, he is no longer in the same category as Tyrese Haliburton. Haliburton is a better passer, can score at the rim with a greater success, has a higher basketball IQ, is much more connected with his teammates and isn’t selfish with the basketball. On top of all that, Haliburton is a better defender than Trae is too, but that isn’t a ringing endorsement of Tyrese being a good defender.
Overall, when the Pacers dropped 157 points on the Hawks in the In-Season Tournament game, one of the first things Trae talked about to the media was how he has improved on defense. I chuckled when I heard this, because it takes a special individual to talk about individual defense being improved on a night your team gave up 157 points in a loss. I respect Trae’s offensive game and know that he is a dynamic scorer, but when it comes to leading a team, give me Haliburton 100 out of 100 times.
10). Bennedict Mathurin continues to improve as a shooter
Over the last 10 games, Bennedict is shooting the ball extremely well. In those 10 games he is shooting 55.3% from the field (57-103), 41.9% from 3 (18-43) and is 28-32 from the free throw line for 87.5%.
Since returning to the bench, Benn has matured offensively and isn’t just a one trick pony. He sees the floor better than he had previously and is making shots at a higher rate. Tyrese Haliburton told the media that he has talked with Bennedict about becoming a better catch and shoot player and we have seen him work on his quick release.
In the last 10 games, Mathurin has attempted 21 catch and shoot threes and has made 10 of them. That puts his 3P% at 47.6% on catch and shoot threes in that stretch. For the season, Mathurin is 19-46 on catch and shoot 3s, making 41.3% of his attempts. Jumping from 41.3 to 47.6 is a solid improvement and it is only opening up Benn’s game more. If he can continue to be a solid catch and shoot shooter, it will allow for him to fit into the offensive system with Haliburton better.
Took my boys ages 8 and 10 to their first game and they had a blast. The Pacers were shooting 70% from the field until midway through the 3rd quarter. It was great to see the whole squad get some PT.
Great read, Alex!