Indiana Pacers Take Another Bad Turn in Rough Season

The Indiana Pacers have been one of the worst teams in the league this season, but it appears that there could be a spot further than the rock bottom they currently face.

NBA.com writer John Schuhmann conducted his latest power rankings, and the Pacers fell two spots from number 27 to 29.

"The Pacers went into the All-Star break with two straight wins, and they came out of the break with three games against teams – Washington (x 2) and Dallas – in the bottom eight of the league. But they lost all three, falling back into last place in the Eastern Conference," Schuhmann wrote.

"The Pacers’ post-break schedule gets a little tougher this week, and they’re 0-2 against the Sixers, having scored just 105 points per 100 possessions over the two games. The third meeting is on Tuesday and the second game of a four-game homestand for Indiana."

Pacers Continue to Fall in Power Rankings

Only the Sacramento Kings rank below the Pacers in the power rankings. While the Pacers are falling in the power rankings, there is reason to be optimistic about the product on the floor for the final 24 games of the season.

"The Pacers still do a decent job of taking care of the ball, given how much it moves in their offense. But they’ve seen the league’s fourth biggest jump in turnover rate from last season, and they committed 44 total turnovers in their two losses in Washington last week. They were without Pascal Siakam (personal reasons) in both games, and have a much lower turnover rate with him on the floor (12.8 per 100 possessions) than they do with him off (15.7 per 100)," Schuhmann wrote.

"Jarace Walker has been handling the ball more of late and was responsible for 10 of those 44 turnovers in Washington. But he’s now scored in double figures in each of his last 13 games, averaging 21 points per 36 minutes over that stretch. He has an effective field goal percentage of 56.9% since Christmas, up from a brutal 41.3% prior."