What Now?

After the dust settled, the puzzle is starting to form for the 2016-17 Pacers season. It’s not finished yet, but like any puzzle, you can see what picture it’s supposed to create before it’s completed. The starting five if the season started today probably will look like this, though once July 1 hits all bets are off.

The Pacers are sitting with about $18-$20 million in cap room to sign free agents or $10-$12 million with Mahinmi’s cap hold. The decision on whether to re-sign Mahinmi or not is an interesting one, though it seems as if it isn’t going to happen. All indications point to him testing the market in free agency, and no one in the Pacers organization has really included his name when talking about the future of the team.

So, what pieces are left? With likely Mahinmi gone, the big man rotation isn’t looking strong. The closest thing to a backup center on the team right now is Rakeem Christmas, who has about as much proving to do this offseason as Niang does. The big man market is sparse, but they need to figure something out.

The next problem comes from having George, Teague, and Ellis on the floor at the same time. There’s only one ball in a regulation NBA game. They all need it in their hands to be successful.

The next problem comes from having George, Teague, and Ellis on the floor at the same time. There’s only one ball in a regulation NBA game. They all need it in their hands to be successful. Ellis, a faux-point guard, could cause trouble with Teague in terms of wanting to be the ballhandler. An option could be to have Ellis come off the bench as a sixth man. But, who starts at the 2? Do the Pacers insert C.J. Miles back into the starting lineup, or do they sign someone like Courtney Lee or Eric Gordon?

The final problem that sticks out is defense. While Teague and Young were great additions to the team, they didn’t make their name on the defensive end. Not to mention, defensive genius Frank Vogel isn’t coaching the squad anymore. The hope is that Dan Burke, who’s staying on the team as an assistant coach, can think something up to get stops with this lineup. The realistic hope is that they find a way to be more efficient scorers in their fast paced offense than deficient defenders.

The next step in putting this puzzle comes with the start of free agency on July 1. But, based on what was put into place last week, this puzzle is looking like it could be something special.