When the Indiana Pacers announced they were trading Paul George to the Oklahoma City Thunder, fans were shocked. In return, they received two players from the OKC Thunder; Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. In addition, the Pacers also got rid of ten players transitioning into the 2017-18 season. This started the process of practically making a whole new team.
Many projected the Pacers would not make it to the playoffs. According to ESPN, the Pacers were projected to have 32 wins and 50 losses, placing them 11 in the Eastern Conference. With only 11 games remaining in the 2017-18 season, the team is currently fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 41-30 record.
“Following the Paul George trade, the Indiana Pacers have no past NBA All-Stars on their roster,” Fansided writer Adrian Lawhorn said. “The hope is that at least one player can step into that void in 2018, but that doesn’t appear likely.”
After losing George, the All-Star game only seemed like a dream to the 2017-18 Pacers. George had been the team’s All-Star representation from 2013 to 2017. Oladipo turned out to shock not only Pacers fans, but all NBA fans. According to Fox Sports, Oladipo averaged 13.9 points last season and he is now averaging 18.3 points with the Pacers. Oladipo ended up playing in the 2018 All-Star game in Los Angeles and participating in the dunk challenge.
“I think they’re probably the surprise team of the season so far,” Lakers coach Luke Walton said. “[Oladipo and Sabonis] are playing unbelievable. Both of those players they got in the trade they’re playing some really really good basketball so obviously a good trade for both teams.”
The Pacers have varied scoring between all their players. Instead of having the same player score the most points every night, their scoring varies between the whole team. One night, Oladipo can be the highest scoring player, the next it can be Thaddeus Young. They work well as a team and do not have to rely on one player to win every game.
“It’s not surprising that exchanging Paul George for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis worked out rather well,” Fansided writer Jonathan Matthes said. “It’s not surprising that the supporting cast could play some basketball. And it shouldn’t be surprising that Kevin Pritchard trusting his players and not trading any of them at the deadline worked out.”
