NBA Power Rankings: The Los Angeles Clippers’ curse is lame
Indiana Pacers 22-22
Last week: 2-3
Last rank: 12th
After the embarrassment across the pond, the Indiana Pacers have been a much sharper team in their return to the states. It’s as if they became a completely different team when they crossed the Atlantic Ocean. The biggest takeaway from this past week has to be the play of Myles Turner against DeMarcus Cousins and the Sacramento Kings. Cousins is pretty much unguardable by any big man in the NBA in a one-on-one situation. His stat line of 16 points, five rebounds and one block doesn’t leap off the page, but he was enough of a nuisance to keep Cousins from taking over the game completely.
Turner has been pushed to the back of most people’s head since the play of his fellow rookie class members –Karl-Anthony Towns, Kristaps Porzingis and Nikola Jokic — took our breath away with their rare combination of skills. However, Turner has the potential to one day be mentioned amongst that trio stated above. The sooner he can reach it, the sooner the Pacers become a consistent contender in the East. Paul George bouncing back from his 10-point performance in London with 19 and 24 points in back-to-back games helps Indiana as well.