Pacers have point guard for 48 minutes, but still no shot making in Denver
The Pacers are 1-8 and can't make a thing... and their G League affiliate is 0-2.
NOBLESVILLE, Ind. – Andrew Nembhard returned from injury on Saturday in Denver and Monte Morris made his Pacers debut. Alright! That's TWO point guards!
The Pacers lost the game, and we'll get to that. But this outing, Indiana's ninth of the season, was the third time the blue and gold had a natural point guard on the floor for 48 minutes, and the first time it didn't involve a two-way contract player. In their weekend back-to-back against the Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors, the Pacers had one of RayJ Dennis or Quenton Jackson on the floor at all times. In every other game, they've had a lineup on the floor without a point guard (Sheppard, Peter, and Mathurin all had moments as the "one").
Then, Saturday night in Denver happened. Nembhard returned from a shoulder injury that had kept him out since halftime of the Pacers season opener, and he logged over 33 minutes. Morris was playing his first game since being signed, and he assumed the other nearly 15 minutes at point guard.
Morris' impact wasn't felt, but the Pacers were treading water in his minutes (30-29 Nuggets) and he didn't have a turnover. That's his thing – his turnover rate is impressively low, which helps in the possession battle. The Pacers had just 11 turnovers against the Nuggets, a season-low number.
Nembhard's return is a factor in that, too, though he led the team with three giveaways. Still, he was great in other ways – 22 points and six assists are the headliners.
The less hearalded stuff is what everyone has come to expect of Nembhard. Per the NBA's matchup data, he guarded two players for at least 2.5 minutes – Jalen Pickett and Bruce Brown. They combined to take one shot (Pickett made it) while guarded by Nembhard and scored just two points. Nembhard only fouled once and forced a turnover by sliding in for a charge.
Ouch. But that's a good play for the Pacers, and Nembhard was largely effective in his third-through-sixth quarters of the season. He's in Golden State tonight and will play in the Chase Center (without Pascal Siakam and Aaron Nesmith, they're both out), an arena he has played well in. As the Pacers search for win number two, they'll hope he can do so again.
The whole team, despite having 48 minutes of experienced point guard play, did not function well when it came to shot making against Denver. Nesmith shot 7/10 from the field and Tony Bradley was 3/4. Every other player shot below 43%, including Nembhard's 7/20 and Siakam's 5/16.
Siakam is seeing a crowded paint and, at times, multiple defenders. It's helped him get to a career-high 5.8 assists per game so far this season. But he was inefficient, especially in the first half, against the Nuggets. Nobody else could lift the team.
The Pacers finished the outing 33/93 from the field. That's 35.5% if you don't have a calculator handy. It's the third game this season that the Pacers have been below 36% from the field. For reference, they had done it three times between the Nate McMillan firing and the start of this season.
Yikes. I get it, they haven't been healthy all season, particularly at point guard. But they haven't had four games in a season shooting below 36% since 2012-13. Health be damned, this level of inaccuracy is jarring.
Some have connected this to Haliburton's absence. Last season the Pacers had an effective field goal percentage of 54.4% with Haliburton on the bench. This season, they are last in the NBA with an effective field goal percentage of 46.3%.
Some then want to say that they haven't had any point guards. That's true. Their effective field goal percentage last season with none of Nembhard, Haliburton, or McConnell on was 51.3%. Remove Jackson and Bennedict Mathurin and that number... actually rises to 53.2%. So, yes, injuries are a problem. But the team is missing shots at an absurd rate regardless of health. They've just gotta make some.
I get that it's an ecosystem team that hasn't had a point guard – and thus, their ecosystem. But they have point guards now and just, quite frankly, have to make some shots. Everyone does. Their season-low point total in Denver made it even more clear.
Noblesville Boom play first-ever home game
The dateline on this post reads "Noblesville" because that's where I watched the first half of Pacers-Nuggets. Obviously, I've been foolish with datelines on this website, but in this case it's actually relevant. I watched the first half of Pacers basketball on Saturday night in The Arena at Innovation Mile, the new home of the Pacers G League affiliate, the Noblesville Boom.
I had already been to the arena this week for their intrasquad scrimmage. It was actually the team's second game of the winter showcase. But it was their first-ever home game since becoming the Boom, and it was a fun one.
After my own issues (a shared experience with many others) with traffic, I arrived late in the first quarter. Grand Rapids was ahead 24-21. It was a sign of things to come – for the next 90 minutes, the scoring margin was within five constantly, with the teams trading the lead.
The Boom held the advantage early in the second half and were down one at 97-96 before the Gold pulled away late, taking the game 120-109. The Boom are now 0-2, but the first home outing was filled with fans. They gave away posters and a t-shirt to attendees.
"I think there's a lot of breakdowns from top to bottom, including me as a veteran," Boom guard Kyle Guy said of Noblesville starting 0-2 with two late-game defeats. "We've got a lot of rookies, and we haven't been together for that long. We only had eight guys... we feel like definitely last night, we let that one get away."
Guy led the Boom in scoring during their home opener with 28, and Pacers preseason participant Jalen Slawson added 23. They both have been good to start the season and have shown off their NBA experience. DaJuan Gordon has two double-doubles in two games.
The Boom next play in Sioux Falls on November 12, and their next home game is on November 22 against Motor City.
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Tony East
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