Indiana Pacers: Adding Mike Conley Makes Sense
By Luke Duffy
The Indiana Pacers are going to be a contender next season, and Mike Conley can help them get there even quicker.
So far, the 2016 NBA Playoffs have been average at best. With a bevy of blowouts and a couple of sweeps, not to mention dreaded injuries, it feels like this postseason is still finding its feet. One team that’s taken its opportunity, however, is the Indiana Pacers.
As of now they’re giving the more fancied Toronto Raptors all they can handle, and at some points in their series have looked like they might advance over the Canadian team. However, just like the Boston Celtics, much of what the Pacers are able to achieve this year is almost like a bonus.
Their star player, Paul George, is back to his dominant best after injury, despite not having a deep roster around him to make a serious playoff run. That will likely change this summer however, when the Pacers return from the shadows they slinked off to when George initially went down with that horrific leg break in August of 2014.
That day was one of the darkest in franchise history, as the team was considered a contender by many, even if they could not get beyond the LeBron James led Miami Heat year after year. President of basketball operations Larry Bird even went public in admitting that while George was injured, the team could not contend and instead would try their best to keep their head above water.
The Pacers did just that, and with their star man now back, suddenly Indiana is looking like it could become relevant in the Eastern Conference once more. It may be a smaller market, but the lure of playing with a top 10 talent like George usually trumps location, meaning they can expect to sit down with some of the more high profile free agents this summer.
One guy who appears to be the perfect fit and would also be attainable is Mike Conley, currently of the Memphis Grizzlies. Although he’s never made an All-Star team, his play over the last three years in particular put him on the same level as some of the more celebrated point guards in the NBA today.
His 15.3 points and 6.1 assists per game in what was an injury-riddled campaign (Conley played in 56 games during the regular season and sat out the first round loss to the San Antonio Spurs) were important for his team. His Player Efficiency Rating of 19.4 was the second highest mark of his career and way ahead of the league average of 15.
More than the numbers though, is how he would fit so well with many of the players currently on the Indiana roster. George is a two-way beast, capable of guarding guys like James and Kevin Durant night after night. It’s also true that Conley has posted a negative number in his defensive box plus/minus output seven out of his nine years in the league.
But, Conley is a better defender than those numbers would have you believe. After all, he has been a key component in the “Grit-n-Grind’ mentality the Grizzlies have brought to the court for years now. He may be undersized some nights depending on the matchup, but he plays hard on that end.
On top of solid defensive play from Conley, offensively teaming up with George would be a nightmare for opponents. Imagine Conley feeding George, and indeed the rest of the team, with his still underrated passing game.
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Guys like Monta Ellis would love that as well. Although oftentimes difficult to pair with other ball dominant guards, Ellis seems to have finally found a home in Indiana. At 30 years old, he appears more accepting of his role within the larger frame of a playoff team like the Pacers, and his 13.8 points per game on 12.6 shot attempts (the lowest number since his rookie year) during the regular season show that.
Could a backcourt pairing of Conley and Ellis be exposed defensively against certain matchups? They would certainly be an undersized combination on some nights against bigger guards. But there’s enough positives in bringing Conley onboard to take that risk.
With a complete pro like George Hill backing him up as well, it would give the Pacers 48 minutes of quality play at the point position each night. Not every team in the league can say that.
It would also allow them to shed Ty Lawson from the roster and look smart in doing so. But why would Conley choose the Pacers over teams like the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics, should they come calling? Well, he did go to high school in Indiana, so there’s some history there. The Grizzlies are not a big market themselves and he’s thrived there, so that wouldn’t be an issue in theory either.
The potential to play with a guy like George at this stage of his career (Conley is 28 and in theory, entering his prime) must surely outweigh the uncertainty of going to somewhere like the Lakers — unless of course they can promise him the capture of more stars as well, something Conley has been vocal about the Grizzlies doing this summer.
I just can’t shake the fact that this would be a perfect match for both team and player though. The idea of Conley running the pick and roll with guys like Myles Turner and Ian Mahinmi is exciting as well. Both guys are hardly Marc Gasol, but Turner has shown enough promise as a rookie while Mahinmi has had a mini-breakout of sorts with some polished performances in the playoffs so far.
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The Indiana Pacers are crying out for a top level floor general to not only get them back to the level they were once at, but to eclipse it. He wouldn’t come cheap, but a dogged guard like Mike Conley would be welcomed with open arms to the Bankers Life Fieldhouse. If he were there today he would be a deciding factor in beating the Raptors. Next season he might be.