The Indiana Pacers parted ways with head coach Nate Bjorkgren after only one season on the job. The team went 34-38, losing in the NBA Play-In Tournament and missing the postseason for the first time since 2015.
Hoping it was just a head coaching issue, the Pacers brought Rick Carlisle back to lead the team. With Carlisle at the helm, ownership thought they would get back on track. Through the first five games of the season, it doesn’t seem like coaching is the sole issue.
Indiana has a record of 1-4 and slow starts happen. Things are exasperated because they are the first five games of the season, not a lull in the dog days of the season in March. But how the Pacers have lost their games speaks to bigger issues.
They blew a 23-point lead on opening night against the Charlotte Hornets, losing 123-122. They were catching a break in Game 2 against the Washington Wizards as Bradley Beal was sidelined with an injury.
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It ended up not mattering, as the Pacers lost 135-134 despite a career-high 40 points from Myles Turner. They played another overtime game in their home opener the next night, defeating the Miami Heat 102-91, but the positive vibes were short-lived.
Indiana was then defeated at home 119-109 by a Milwaukee Bucks team playing without four of the top six players in their rotation in Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez, Bobby Portis, and Donte DiVincenzo, three of whom are starters. The most recent defeat was even more deflating, losing 118-100 to the Toronto Raptors, who were without All-Star Pascal Siakam.
Indiana is without Caris LeVert and T.J. Warren, but it is fair to question just how much they would help in some of these games. Indiana very well could be 3-2 at least if they executed late in games, but the blowouts are a concern as well.
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There was talk throughout the offseason of the Indiana Pacers blowing up the roster, finally moving on from their jumbo frontcourt pairing of Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis. They were also heavily involved in trade talks centered around Ben Simmons, but nothing came to fruition.
The decision to essentially run things back and rely on the coaching upgrade to bring change has certainly backfired thus far. This is a roster that was misread heading into the season and could use a change.
The sooner the better, because things can unravel fast. If the team waits too long to shake things up, it could be a lost season in Indiana before the New Year.
