Poor Indiana, who fought against injuries for 8 years, eventually lost to fate...
In a way, the Pacers should be the most like spurs in the league, no matter what period, they can maintain the resilience of the strong team, the team culture created by the management, and the ability to cultivate, are also the first-class existence in the league, almost every season, this team can tap 1-2 potential stocks, and will become the main rotation, and some will become the cornerstone of the team.
But what is different is that the Spurs have won 5 NBA championships with Duncan, Parker and Ginobili as the main framework, and even if all three have passed the year, they still win again in 14 years;
The Pacers, on the other hand, lacked a bit of luck, and whenever the Indians were looking forward to the future, injuries always came unexpectedly, especially in the past 8 years, the core of the Pacers was like a curse, and one after another they suffered devastating injuries, forcing the team to rebuild again and again.
The Danny Granger era
Due to O'Neal Jr.'s long-term injury, the Pacers urgently need a new leader to lead the team, at this juncture, Granger quickly grew up, and took over the scepter in the hands of his predecessors, as a forward wing, Granger has a very good shooting ability, averaging 25.8 points per game at the peak, ranking fifth in the league at the time, behind Wade, James, Bryant and Nowitzki, and shooting nearly 45% from the field and more than 40% from three-point range.
Unfortunately, Granger's peak was too short, only maintaining an average of 20+ per game for 3 seasons, and was absent for a long time due to torn knee tendons.
Georgian era
After Granger fell, the Pacers quickly dug out Paul George, compared to the former, George's ceiling is higher, the defense is better, has been 2 consecutive seasons, leading the team to the Eastern Conference Finals, especially in the playoffs in 13 years, only 23-year-old George, the Heat led by James, Wade and Bosh, once forced into a desperate situation, almost disbanded early, it is also this year, let the Pacers fans see the hope of the rise of the team.
However, at this time, the accident happened again, in the national team training game, George suffered a broken leg, it took a full year to return to the field, although playing the peak again, but at this time the Pacers' lineup has been completely different, especially the departure of the inner core Hibbert, the first round of the playoffs in consecutive years, which made George disheartened, and finally transferred to the Thunder.
The Oladipo era
After sending George away, many people felt that it would take a long time for the Pacers to return to the playoffs, but what happened?
Led by new signing Oladipo, the Pacers have a record of 45 wins and 37 losses, winning seven more games than George in their final year, not only reaching the playoffs, but also playing seven games against the defending Eastern Conference champion Cavaliers.
Despite the different positions, Oladipo has the same desire to win as George, and he is both offensive and defensive, and that season, he was not only selected for the best third team, but also selected for the defensive second team, and was properly a first-tier star.
The rise of Oladipo rekindled the Indiana's desire for a championship, but unfortunately, the fate is always strikingly similar, Oladipo has not escaped the curse of injury, joining the Pacers in the second season, he was reimbursed for the season of tendon tearing, and after the comeback, Oladipo, like Granger, plummeted.
Bojan, TJ Warren, Sabonis Jr. danced in the era
Admittedly, the Pacers' talent pool and ability to develop are really good, and after Oladipo's injury, someone can quickly come up, such as Bojan, with a report card averaging 18 points per game, and get a high salary from the Jazz;
There is also TJ Warren, Who joined the Pacers in the summer of 1919 and scored 19.8 points in his first season, shooting 53.6% from the field and 40.3% from three-point range, and in the rematch stage, Warren played an MVP-level performance, averaging 31 points per game, including 53 points per game.
When he thought Warren was going to take over Oladipo's class and become the next core of the Pacers, he suffered a stress fracture that led to the season reimbursement, and to this day, Warren has no clear comeback schedule.
The sudden injury surprised the Pacers, and after looking around, they found that they still had a big man to use, he was Sabonis Jr., last season, Sam was given quite a lot of ball rights and shots, and he also lived up to expectations, averaging 20.3 points, 12 rebounds, 6.7 assists per game, which is another version of Jokic.
However, due to the team's poor record and the fact that the new coach Carlisle does not like Sam, the Pacers sent Sa to the Kings a few days ago, and he also became the fourth core of the Pacers to send away in 8 years.
Halliburton Generation?
It is said that Halliburton's ceiling is not high, and see if in the Hands of the Pacers, he can carry the team's flag like Oladipo.
Of course, we also pray for the doom of the Walkers, not to continue with Halliburton.