Theyre still better than most teams in the West. I think only OKC and Spurs are better. As a Rockets homer, i think the Rockets can beat them too, but not quite as confident.
It doesn't matter how credible they are relative to the West. All that matters is that it's pretty clear as of now that there are only 2 good teams in the East and Indiana is one of them. They seem to have gotten better compared to last year, and perhaps Miami has taken a step back. And Miami was already vulnerable last year. Indiana needs to spend this season securing home court, playing a handful of playoff intensity games, finding different ways to win, and prepping to peak during the playoffs.
ESPN Insider: Is Indiana's defense this year the best in NBA history? answer: Yes, so far it is, statistically speaking http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/stor...iana-defense-best-ever-nba-history?src=mobile
i can't read the article, but as of a few days ago it was amazing how far they were ahead of 3rd place chicago in defensive efficiency. the spurs were right there with them but then slipped a little in their next game and i assume took another hit from the rockets game so the pacers are probably pretty far ahead in 1st. granted, they have played a truly terrible schedule, but the numbers are still impressive. i think it was '92-'93 when the knicks finished almost 5 points per 100 possessions ahead of 2nd place, but i think they were only about 8 points per 100 possessions ahead of the league average whereas i think the pacers are more than 10 points ahead (is that how the article is ranking them?).
The Pacers are 4-0 vs. the West, had a better winning percentage vs. the West than vs. the East last year, and had a better winning percentage vs. the West than vs. the East the year before last If anything, playing teams less familiar with them (team in the West, for example) makes their defense more disruptive, not less disruptive. Having said all that, I don't expect them to just waltz through this near-impossible 5 game road trip that includes the Clippers, Blazers, Spurs, and Thunder. 3-2 would be a great trip though. fun fact: They could play 0.500 ball the rest of the season and win 49 games, likely a #2 seed in the East. Personally I'm starting to think that winning 60-65 games is achievable. post #1000!
I think they can win it all. They look like they are coming out of the East and going to the NBA Championship series. Yes, they are that good, and to "put a cherry on it" they beat the Heat tonight.
You'd need to give me great odds to take Indiana over a healthy OKC or SAS in a series. They're engineered to beat Miami though, Hibbert beat them up last year, he beat them up this year. A lot of that will likely hinge on the Miami bodies, and perhaps Oden.
Weak schedule doesn't matter. The mark of a true contender is that they win the games they are meant to win. Pacers have consistently beat the bad teams. Look at the "pretenders" throughout the years and you will find them all having shock losses to bad teams they were meant to beat. The real contenders don't do that. How many times have we seen the Rockets beat contenders just to see them come crashing down to earth by losing to a lottery team? It only happened last week (SAS then our 2 shock losses).
Pacers are a danger to the NBA. They have solid depth, they're young, have good shooting, good ball movement, a good center AND they play good team defense with players who can guard multiple positions. If they stay healthy they are my 2nd choice for winning the NBA title this year. Miami is still number one, though. The Heat have the prime vets, they know how to win, even though they lose a game in Indy last night its not going to effect them or the way they continue to play. These guys aren't scared of Indy, and home court advantage is overrated when you have a veteran team like the Heat.
I'm following NBA closely for only two years now, but if I'm not mistaken, Indiana became a top team without tanking, right? Like Houston. So you don't have to tank in order to become great and that doesn't hold true only for big market teams like NYK and LAL.
