Indiana Pacers hope roster changes can break 48-win ceiling

Predictions

I don’t think everything is going to come crashing down on this team to the point where they miss the playoffs.

But I also don’t believe that everything is going to be rainbows and unicorns either.

The midpoint of 34 and 57, the worst- and best-case win totals previously mentioned, is 45.5. Let’s round it down, say Indiana will go 45-37, and pencil them in for yet another 5 seed and yet another first-round exit, the blissful mediocrity of the last five years of Indiana Pacers basketball secured for yet another frustrating end to a promising year.

The team will finish in the bottom three in 3-point attempt rate, the bottom third in offensive rating, and the bottom five in pace, coached by a guy who back in his days in Portland coached the second-slowest team of all time ahead of only Mike Fratello’s infamous mid-’90s Cleveland Cavaliers.

They’ll be great on defense. The slow-paced, frequently close games will provide fans with a lot of fourth-quarter thrills, and the team will be competitive every night.

But the nagging feeling of wasted potential will linger like a foul stench over the court as fans once again start turning their attention to the offseason in late April after just five games of playoff basketball.