3 questions for the Indiana Pacers leading up to the 2019 NBA Playoffs

SACRAMENTO, CA - MARCH 29: Darren Collison #2, Myles Turner #33 and Thaddeus Young #21, Bojan Bogdanovic #44 and Victor Oladipo #4 of the Indiana Pacers talk during the game against the Sacramento Kings on March 29, 2018 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) /

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The Indiana Pacers have 16 games remaining in the 2018-19 season and with a depleted roster, they have an unique set of obstacles in this final stretch of games.

After tough losses to the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers over the weekend, the Indiana Pacers‘ schedule isn’t going to get any easier in the final month of play. They’ll face a surging Boston Celtics team twice in the same week, along with the Western Conference’s top three teams in the Golden State Warriors, the Denver Nuggets and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

With a roster that produces mixed contributions from Thaddeus Young, Bojan Bogdanovic, Darren Collison and Myles Turner, the Pacers haven’t shown the defensive resilience lately that they flaunted before the injury to their star guard Victor Oladipo. The numbers, according to ESPN‘s Malika Andrews, however, show that the team still holds the NBA’s second-best defensive rating behind only Milwaukee.

However, their current lack of star power could be what hurts them in the playoff run, where they’ll likely see Eastern Conference foes including the likes of the Detroit Pistons, who sport the tandem of Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond, and Kyrie Irving and the Celtics, among others. Indiana is currently the only Eastern Conference playoff team that has no active players who participated in the 2019 All-Star Game.

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Despite all of this, the team has still finessed a 42-25 record up until this point of the season. In their last 15 games, here are the big questions that the Indiana Pacers face.

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