Indiana Pacers: Bojan Bogdanovic starting to earn his salary

Despite some discouraging slumps, Bojan Bogdanovic is proving his worth as a member of the Indiana Pacers.

I will never forget how my 2016 fantasy basketball season came crashing down. Going to sleep that night, I assumed my 5-4 lead to be safe, with my opponent deploying only one player that evening, who was then-Brooklyn Net, Bojan Bodganovic.

However, contrary to all my assumptions, he proceeded to go absolutely nuts and dropped a cool 44 points on that chilly March evening, ultimately being the demise of my brilliant fantasy run.

The point is, Bojan can score with the best of them. It’s no secret that Bogdanovic is looked at as a one-trick pony to some degree, and given his hefty (albeit short-term) contract worth a cool $21 million, that’s one expensive pony!

For those who have witnessed flashes of his elite scoring prowess firsthand, there’s plenty of reason to get his name right, and not confuse him with the non-related, Sacramento Kings shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic (or even Los Angeles Clippers big man Boban Marjanovic).

Still, not long ago, he could’ve been argued to be the Indiana Pacers’ best and most logical trade chip, but as the deadline fizzles out, the beauty of this Pacers season continues to shine through as Bojan is putting up undeniable numbers. He’s back!

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Bojan has been on fire lately, averaging 21.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.5 made 3-pointers, and a respectable 1.5 swipes per game over the past four contests. Believe it or not, those numbers compare to that of Klay Thompson.

Before you scoff, Bojan is clearly not Klay Thompson. But after a long offensive drought, it appears that the Croatian small forward is doing everything he can to prove that he is worth his salary.

After all, this is exactly what the Pacers brought him in to do: produce on offense and lighten the burden on their stars. Bojan is doing just that.

Victor Oladipo sat out with an illness against the Washington Wizards on Monday night. To make things worse, Myles Turner did his best disappearing act, putting up a lousy six points, five rebounds and one block in 23 minutes of action. Bojan Bogdanivic made good on his sizable contract, dropping 29 points and most importantly, helping the Pacers avert a complete blowout to a likely playoff rival in the Washington Wizards.

Is he making the players around him better? Well, not really.

That simply isn’t what his role needs to be in Indiana though. That’s why the Pacers have supporting cast members like Lance Stephenson, who is also having a career resurgence under this team’s unique run of success.

His minutes are at a career high, he is in the least contested starting position of his career (similar to a run he had in Brooklyn), and there’s no reason why he can’t catch fire and stay hot the rest of the season.

The only downside to this situation is that Thaddeus Young has be proven to be more effective at the power forward position, and that leaves the tantalizing upside of Domantas Sabonis on the bench, where his growth will be limited.

Next: 2017-18 Week 17 NBA Power Rankings

A good problem to have, indeed! This squad has all the elements of a Cinderella story, so keep your fingers crossed.

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Indiana Pacers: Bojan Bogdanovic is starting to earn his salary

By Bobby Friedman | Feb 7, 2018

Despite some discouraging slumps, Bojan Bogdanovic is proving his worth as a member of the Indiana Pacers.