Official Game Thread: Hawks at Pacers (1 PM Tip!) -- The Regular-Season Finale!

[lethalweapon3]

“Y’all had to watch the NBA Finals on tape delay because a white Ford Bronco was in a police chase on the freeway? Dag, LP, that’s CRAZY!”

 

Bizarro World Atlanta Hawks are finishing the season true to form!

The actual Hawks are closing out this disenchanting season while bearing a 36-45 record (15-25 in away games) this afternoon at Indiana’s Fieldhouse. In so doing, they face the team directly in their funhouse mirror, the Pacers, who enter this game with a 46-35 record, 25-15 at home. Still, Atlanta could also leave Rick Carlisle and Lloyd Pierce’s club with the notion that we may meet again, soon.

Indiana’s brass made the big Trade-Deadline-run-up moves that Atlanta’s would not. Despite the positive start to the season, including a trip to the inaugural IST Finals, and the glowing press that flowed with it right on through the All-Star Game that Indianapolis hosted, the Pacers were not so enamored with Bruce Brown and Buddy Hield that they couldn’t try to enhance their postseason chances, by pursuing Pascal Siakam, and replenish their cash coffers in hopes of future contention.

“Shady government schemes to kneecap cities by flooding them with illicit-good market supplies” may not be the full picture of reality, but whether it’s Snowfall or Breaking Bad or The Wire, the “villain hiding in plain sight” always makes for entertaining Hollywood fiction. There’s a Real Villain unspoken in any dramatic storyline building tension among its main actors. For our dear Hawks, they’ve been undone by a two-man tag team. I’ve been calling out one heel all season long in these gamethreads – the NBA Schedule Making Office, delivering their chairshot before Atlanta could make it out the tunnel – but not its sinister masked luchador partner, the Injury Bug, with its myriad toeholds and anklelocks.

Spotrac has the Hawks ranked 4^th-overall, behind Lottery-bound Memphis, Portland, and Charlotte, for the most NBA games lost due to injury or illness (15 different players racking up 295 non-appearances, entering today). It will not surprise you at this point to discover that the Bizarro World Hawks of Indiana (14 players, 109 games lost) have the NBA’s second-lowest cumulative tally, wedged between league sweethearts OKC (81) and Minnesota (112).

The All-Star voted in to be an Eastern Conference starting guard in Indianapolis by NBA fans, only to need the Commissioner penciling him in as an injury replacement, Trae Young’s 27 games-missed (hand/concussion/illnesses) exceeded Indiana’s biggest injury-hit of the season in second-year wing Bennedict Mathurin (21 games missed, underwent season-ending shoulder surgery in March). When the best ability is availability, it can mean the difference between 36-46 and, say, 46-36.

It is also realistic to assess that the cast members make crucial and oft-fatal missteps, from one episode to the next, that leave fans wishing to tune out instead of in. The Hawks tricked off games versus those Lottery-bound clubs – the aforementioned Memphis, Portland, and Charlotte, plus Washington, Toronto, Utah, etc. – and earlier-season meetings versus anyone where Atlanta was the team, at least by default, with the healthier contingents, that would otherwise have made the Not-Bizarro World Hawks’ season far less bizarre.

Carlisle’s Pacers (24th in D-Rating), like Snyder’s Hawks (26th in D-Rating), have lost 14 games versus sub-.500 teams. What they also have in their pocket, thanks to the scheduling gods, are 3 more victories (21-14, to ATL's 18-14). They’ll have a fourth, too, if they prevail this afternoon (1 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, BS Indiana) for a four-game sweep of Atlanta.

Taking care of business as a head-to-head favorite against the underdogs may not have completely erased the 10-game separation in the standings for the Hawks. But it certainly would have allowed them to be in the mix for a more favorable Play-In scenario, one that Indiana, like Orlando and Philadelphia (each also 46-35, 1.0 game ahead of 45-36 MIA), is hoping to avoid altogether today.

The Pacers left themselves in a precarious situation by easing up off the gas shortly after the All-Star Break. Since beating Dallas at home soundly on February 25, then losing at the Fieldhouse the next night versus Siakam’s prior team, Indy has failed to build a winning streak value higher than three. They could have been riding a four-game win streak but for Friday’s 129-120 loss in Cleveland. Two defeats in recent weeks by the Cavs (the earlier one with Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley watching from afar) isn’t the only reason it is Indiana, not Cleveland (48-33, assured of first-round homecourt), needing to skirt the Play-In.

Pockmarked with recent losses to the Spurs and Nets, and to Play-In contenders Chicago (twice) and the Lakers, Haliburton (17.5 PPG and 30.9 3FG% post-All-Star-Break) and his colleagues have not exactly set the pace they’ve needed to look the part of an opening-round threat, something that hasn’t happened since the fateful coach Nate McMillan’s Bubble-darlings were popped by untimely injury ahead of the Pacers’ last postseason trip in 2020.

Indiana knows it’s imperative to win their fifth straight home game today. A slip-up today, and theoretically in a 7-versus-8 matchup in a couple days, and one of either division rival DeMar DeRozan or Play-In specialist Young (24.5 points, on 64.5 FG%, and NBA-high 13.5 assists per-36 in past 2 games), the latter clearly loaded for bear after returning from a pinkie injury, pays the Pacers a visit with the Playoffs on the line. For as well as his All-NBA-caliber season has gone, Tyrese does not want to be the one, later this week, staring at the Man in the Mirror.

The weather outside suggests it is a wonderful time for a spring awakening. But one false move (really, two) inside by the Pacers, and they know Winter is Coming. For the visiting Hawks, this week is no time to get caught up in reflection.

 

Rest Easy, Rico Wade. Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Uh-Oh. Scenarios!

https://www.si.com/nba/pacers/news/indiana-pacers-playoff-scenarios-on-final-day-of-2023-24-regular-season

Quote

 

The Pacers play the Hawks Sunday, a team they have beaten three times already this season. But Atlanta has no incentive to lose like other teams in the league, so Indiana will still need to play well to take them down. Philadelphia hosts the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday while Orlando welcomes the Milwaukee Bucks to town and Miami duels with the Toronto Raptors. All four games tip off at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Each outing is massive, but things are simple for Indiana. If they win, they will finish Sunday in the top-six of the Eastern Conference, and they will either be the sixth seed (if Orlando also wins) or the fifth seed (if Orlando loses).

They can also lose and secure a top-six spot in the East, but they would need some help. Should the Pacers lose, they would still end the regular season with the sixth seed if Orlando and Brooklyn win or if Milwaukee, Brooklyn, and Toronto all win. Not all hope is lost for the Pacers in defeat, but they would need a ton of help.

 

Clint Capela is back on the Boo-Boo Report as Questionable (rest), with nothing else new aside from maybe Dylan Windler (ineligible to play).

Backup Isaiah Jackson (Questionable, strained hammy) has been in-and-out and day-to-day for the past week. Fellow bigs Obi Toppin and Jalen Smith are each Questionable with a matching pair of left ankle sprains.  

Assisting Rudy T during the alluded-to 1994 NBA Finals was Jim Boylen, currently sitting alongside LP as Rick Carlisle's assistant in Indiana.

Speaking of assisting, might Trae have one more Stat-PADD left in him for the regular season?

Haliburton's 42 PADDs have come in 68 games, Young's 37 in 15 fewer games. 

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Interesting (from yesterday) only because of KrejciWatch:

~lw3

[kg01]

1pm start?!?  Yall know what that means?

Off-brand start times = Blowout city editions.

 

[bleachkit]

Are we playing our starters?

[lethalweapon3]

Aside from the pimento-cheese-eating contest down I-20 East, and all the people-watching and pollen-sniffing at the Dogwood Festival, there are more events on TV simultaneously this early afternoon to whet our local sports' appetites. ATLUTD hosts the MLS East's points per game leader in the Philadelphia Union, airing on Fox today at 2:30. Bravos and Fish Sticks first-pitch is scheduled for 1:40 on BS South.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Thanks, Carlsile! Quin Snyedr, your move!

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

And if you had a daughter, sir, would you dress her in THIS white-and-gold?

The unheralded Pacer Edmond Sumner was the Malachi Flynn Award winner five regular season-enders ago:

~lw3

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[benhillboy]

52 minutes ago, bleachkit said:

Are we playing our starters?

Everyone except Clint.  Good decision, he doesn’t need to be running with the Pacers’ #2 pace with Drummond on the horizon.   Their unfamiliarity with Bruno and Mo should pay some dividends.

Edited April 14 by benhillboy

[Spud2nique]

2 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Spotrac has the Hawks ranked 4^th-overall, behind Lottery-bound Memphis, Portland, and Charlotte, for the most NBA games lost due to injury or illness (15 different players racking up 295 non-appearances, entering today).

 Geez  

 

2 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Indiana knows it’s imperative to win their fifth straight home game today.

I kinda wanna screw them over.  

2 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Winter is Coming

Ohhh weee fur (PETA approved plastic fur) on and ready! How bout just the Jeff Hamilton vegan one  

2 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Rest Easy, Rico Wade.

 

 

2 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

Thanks for another wonderful season of write ups lw3! Passion for the game continues.. love it! We are blessed for each and every write up no other fan base gets this treatment. @lethalweapon3 

 

GO HAWKS!!!!!!
 

ps 2K 109-102 Hawks! 
 

pps Vegas has Indy -14.5  o/u 241.5 Hawks are a +675 whoa ! #underdogs4thewin

[benhillboy]

Such a smart home crowd.  Chanting “defense!” immediately after the tip.  Most fans don’t know how much it energizes the team.

[benhillboy]

Bogi forced Siakam off the ball in the post and they still get 3 smh. 

They can run an elite pace because they have active hands on defense.  Bruce Brown showed them how to get timely stops then they trade him lol.

Edited April 14 by benhillboy

[benhillboy]

I was staunchly against the play in tournament at first.  Looking at how consequential game 82 is around the league, the sh*t works.

Aight it’s time for Myles to sit.

[benhillboy]

DJ is ass defending on ball I swear.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Pacers frontcourt has 19 points already.

All the emphasis is about the backcourt defense, but the frontcourt has ALWAYS been the problem.

[terrell]

Ive seen enough of the Trae-Murray duo to last me a lifetime...

Dre’s inability to rebound making the 4 spot not really an option for him puts a real hard ceiling on his usefulness

That putback dunk by Siakam entirely because of him.. smh

Trae turnover is back I see.. Such a difference maker for us..

Edited April 14 by terrell

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Siakam with 10 . . . Turner with 11

But Hawks fans poo poo on both guys.

 

Shoot the damn ball Trae.

[KB21]

2 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

Pacers frontcourt has 19 points already.

All the emphasis is about the backcourt defense, but the frontcourt has ALWAYS been the problem.

Perimeter defense has always been the issue.  

[terrell]

2 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

Pacers frontcourt has 19 points already.

All the emphasis is about the backcourt defense, but the frontcourt has ALWAYS been the problem.

Backcourt is a problem too.