Indiana early offseason in review (HW/bondom34/dbrandon/Slava/Scoot McGroot/winter_mute_13)

[Wizop]

Teague/Ellis as a backcourt is a liability on D, and if the young Turner gets into foul trouble or struggles with his matchup there's no defensive presence in the middle. And is there anyone on the Pacers bench known for bringing defense? It seems like they only cared to sign scorers.

well there is Seraphin but defense is scheme and effort and not just talent - witness Dakich v Jordan. I think the hope is that we'll force teams to match down with our backcourt or at least punish them with speed if they don't. I do take your point, but as I say every summer, if you can't be an optimist in the summer, you just aren't a fan. realism comes later in the year.

[Illmatic12]

Teague/Ellis as a backcourt is a liability on D, and if the young Turner gets into foul trouble or struggles with his matchup there's no defensive presence in the middle. And is there anyone on the Pacers bench known for bringing defense? It seems like they only cared to sign scorers.

well there is Seraphin but defense is scheme and effort and not just talent - witness Dakich v Jordan. I think the hope is that we'll force teams to match down with our backcourt or at least punish them with speed if they don't. I do take your point, but as I say every summer, if you can't be an optimist in the summer, you just aren't a fan. realism comes later in the year.

Seraphin is honestly one of the worst defenders in the league, and a foul machine. He's basically a homeless/dying man's Al Jefferson

I don't think a Teague/Ellis backcourt really scares anyone (offense or defense) but it's possible George goes to another level playing with an agile playmaker like Teague.

[Scoot McGroot]

Teague/Ellis as a backcourt is a liability on D, and if the young Turner gets into foul trouble or struggles with his matchup there's no defensive presence in the middle. And is there anyone on the Pacers bench known for bringing defense? It seems like they only cared to sign scorers.

well there is Seraphin but defense is scheme and effort and not just talent - witness Dakich v Jordan. I think the hope is that we'll force teams to match down with our backcourt or at least punish them with speed if they don't. I do take your point, but as I say every summer, if you can't be an optimist in the summer, you just aren't a fan. realism comes later in the year.

Seraphin is honestly one of the worst defenders in the league, and a foul machine. He's basically a homeless/dying man's Al Jefferson

I don't think a Teague/Ellis backcourt really scares anyone (offense or defense) but it's possible George goes to another level playing with an agile playmaker like Teague.

Good. That's pretty much exactly his role, and exactly what he's getting paid. Sounds like he's put into a position where he fits perfectly.

As for Teague/Ellis? Yeah, I don't think they scare anyone. I think they can run, and that will help them. I think the key to Teague is that he's a real PG. We loved George Hill, and he sometimes initiated offense, but he wasn't a real PG. Too much of our offensive system revolved around the whole "dribble around 15 seconds, and then give it to Paul George and hope something happens". With Teague, the hope is that he's a real PG that can get the ball to people in positions where they can score, and allow Paul George to still be offensively dynamic, but to save some effort and strength in doing so. Rather than going 1 on 5, the hope is that Teague helps everyone else be a little more effective, and it's closer to 5 on 5.

[Illmatic12]

well there is Seraphin but defense is scheme and effort and not just talent - witness Dakich v Jordan. I think the hope is that we'll force teams to match down with our backcourt or at least punish them with speed if they don't. I do take your point, but as I say every summer, if you can't be an optimist in the summer, you just aren't a fan. realism comes later in the year.

Seraphin is honestly one of the worst defenders in the league, and a foul machine. He's basically a homeless/dying man's Al Jefferson

I don't think a Teague/Ellis backcourt really scares anyone (offense or defense) but it's possible George goes to another level playing with an agile playmaker like Teague.

Good. That's pretty much exactly his role, and exactly what he's getting paid. Sounds like he's put into a position where he fits perfectly.

As for Teague/Ellis? Yeah, I don't think they scare anyone. I think they can run, and that will help them. I think the key to Teague is that he's a real PG. We loved George Hill, and he sometimes initiated offense, but he wasn't a real PG. Too much of our offensive system revolved around the whole "dribble around 15 seconds, and then give it to Paul George and hope something happens". With Teague, the hope is that he's a real PG that can get the ball to people in positions where they can score, and allow Paul George to still be offensively dynamic, but to save some effort and strength in doing so. Rather than going 1 on 5, the hope is that Teague helps everyone else be a little more effective, and it's closer to 5 on 5.

Well the post I quoted implied that Seraphin could provide a defensive presence, which is certainly not true. As an end up bench cheap pickup who will mostly be DNPed except in blowouts, I agree that Seraphin is fine in that role. But he doesn't fill any holes on the team, there are still glaring defensive issues in INDs frontcourt.

Teague is a better playmaker than Hill. But he'll have to make some adjustments to reduced usage, and playing more off the ball - not easy to predict how he'll fare.