Pacers are the blueprint

Big Dick Bic 5 days ago

No bias or dickride, I mean this objectively.

I don't think Pacers are even the favorites rn, but the real favorites (OKC) also partly fall under this blueprint.

The role players in the NBA are getting more talented. Of course, championship teams have always needed help around their superstar(s). However, previously its been a game of who has the strongest strong link; who has the best player. With the growth of NBA role players, its becoming a game of who has the strongest weak link. Who has role players capable of stepping up?

Im talking about star/superstar capabilities in role players. Not just consistently hustling, playing good defense, hitting corner threes. Im talking about taking over, hitting five straight threes, hitting clutch game winners.

Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Myles Turner. The first two guys say nothing to the casual fan. Turner is the guy always about to be traded to the Lakers. These three role players are capable of dominating anyone. All of them can hit threes, play lockdown defense, some (Nembhard mainly) can even lead a playoff offense at times.

Haliburton and Siakam are by no means weak stars either. They have great chemistry and fit the team perfectly (or the team is built around them perfectly). They make the offense run. But the role players unlock the highest gear of the offense. Neither Siakam or Haliburton is a high volume scorer (ignore Siakam's recent G2 explosion vs Knicks), and can be outscored by the role players any game.

In my opinion, there is no better role player trio in the league than Nembhard, Nesmith, and Turner. Shoutout to the Pacers for turning a 2nd round pick, chip in player in the Brogdon trade, and a draft pick from 10 years ago into the most reliable role player cast.

The Pacers' bench, while not performing as well as last year, can still be relied to in the playoffs. TJ McConnell does his quirky dribble drives to midrange jumper or out, while playing good D. Bennedict Mathurin and Obi Toppin provide a great scoring punch off the bench. Thomas Bryant with the rebounding off the bench.

Most importantly, the bench is an integral part in keeping the starters fresh, thus keeping the pace up, which is the identity of the team.

The pace is the second unique factor, blueprint part of the team. In the past, high pace, high scoring, high octane offenses have been "gimmicky". They look amazing in the regular season, just outscoring everyone. Then come playoffs, the offense is slowed down and the defense collapses.

Not with the Pacers. The role players hold the defense together. The bench keeps the pace up and starters fresh. Pacers are showing that with proper structure and right players, high pace is not just a gimmick anymore. Pacers can blow out any team in the league, and come back from any deficit.

And let's be real, Rick Carlisle is simply outcoaching Tom Thibodeau. It's not even about specific details within the games, it's about Thibs being stubborn. For his career, he has had talented squads, good runs, but no rings. He is over reliant on his top guys, and has iso based offense where ball stopping superstars are at the forefront.

Rick Carlisle is the anti-thesis of this. He has a reputation of also being old-school and not giving chances to his young guys. However, this Pacers squad has shown his flexibility. Nembhard, Nesmith, Mathurin, even Haliburton and Ben Sheppard to an extent. All young guys who Carlisle has relied on. And the offense is free flowing, ball movement based. Not relying on iso unlike Thibs. And let's not forget, Carlisle already has won a ring with an underdog squad (Mavericks 2011).

So, the blueprint is:

1) role players that can take over. Not just the classic 3 and D (though those are obviously still important), but a few guys who can step up

2) reliable bench that keeps starters fresh (3-5 guys)

3) pace, pace, pace. And conditioning.

It is still very difficult to put together a team like this. But you look at Celtics championship team last year, and the "strongest weak link" theory matches. Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, and Kristaps Porzingis/Al Horford is similar to the trio of Nembhard, Nesmith, and Turner. Celtics lead star, Jayson Tatum, struggled in the finals. The ing cast stepped up, and the 2nd option Jaylen Brown ended up being the best player and FMVP in the series.

I can see this happening for Pacers. Haliburton has had timely and clutch scoring this year, but he is not a top tier scorer. It is possible he has a low scoring finals while the role players and Siakam step up, Pacers win it all and Siakam wins the FMVP