Maintain the Pace of Play That They Desire
The Pacers want to play at a faster pace after the break in their schedule. The main rationale behind wanting to operate at a quicker pace is that it creates more possessions throughout games. It can be both an advantage and a disadvantage depending on how those possessions are used.
It is important that Indiana establishes an identity and they work to build on it. Identifying a pace of play can be an important part of that and Indiana has played at a 97.18 pace (28th) so far this season.
Indiana actually played at one of the league’s faster paces last season up until the month of December. For reference, up until that point, they played at a 99.89 pace (8th) and after that point, they played at a 95.90 pace (26th) and that was one of the slowest in the league.
In addition to the further growth in perimeter shooting volume across the league, teams are playing at a faster pace. Last season, the Pacers played at a 96.90 pace (21st) so their pace this season has actually been slightly higher so far.
Nate McMillan recently told the media that establishing the pace begins with rebounding and also noted that forcing missed shots is important too. Before getting into identifying how the Pacers can push the pace more, it’s important to understand when they aren’t doing it.
Among the Pacers’ nine lineups that have logged at least 15 minutes together, there is only one unit that is not playing above a 100.00 pace. In fact, the slowest pace among this pool of lineups is 100.31 with the next closest being 102.39 and the rest being above 103.0.
That one particular lineup that is playing much slower than the rest of their most frequently used combinations is their starting lineup. They have logged a league-most 236 minutes together (leads the NBA by 60 minutes) and play at just a 95.55 pace. Last season, this group played 696 minutes together and played at a 98.56 pace.
Among the 22 lineups in the NBA that have played for at least 100 minutes together, Indiana’s starting unit is last in pace by a 2.52 margin. In fact, there are only four other lineups among this pool that are playing below a 100.00 pace.
McMillan’s idea that establishing the pace of play begins with rebounding appears to correlate with the Pacers’ starting group. That particular lineup combination has produced just a 66.2 percent defensive rebounding percentage, which ranks 21st among the 22 lineup combinations that have played at least 100 minutes together.
Forcing missed shots is another aspect to pace that McMillan mentioned and Indiana’s starting lineup hasn’t been bad but there is room for improvement. They have allowed a 45.2 percent opponent field goal percentage and that ranks 10th among the 22 lineups that have played for at least 100 minutes.
A particular problem with the Pacers’ starting unit is that they have two perimeter players that are not proficient on-ball defenders or simply defensive players, in general, along with a frontcourt that does not excel in the rebounding department. Having such a combination together is not going to yield strong results as we have already seen.
Upgrading their defensive capabilities at their perimeter positions within their starting lineup would make it significantly easier to force missed shots. Also, their frontcourt would be able to gain better rebounding position since they wouldn’t have to cover up such leaky on-ball defense.
