TURNER, SABONIS, and WARREN LOOK TO FILL THE VOID LEFT BY OLADIPO

The Indiana Pacers won both of their games against the Sacramento Kings last week while showing off a high-scoring offense. After a nail-biting 132-131 thriller in the first match-up, they followed it up with an easy 130-106 rout. The team was firing on all cylinders for both meetings and averaged 131.5 points on 52% shooting.

With Victor Oladipo still out with a knee injury, new Pacer TJ Warren will look to take the mantle in the wing position – he led all scorers in the preseason opener with 30 and sank five of his six attempts from downtown. Warren, a wide-bodied forward who has added an outside shot to his game, was the second-leading scorer of the Phoenix Suns in the last two seasons, posting 18.9 PPG in that span.

While Warren appears to have the wing position locked down for scoring opportunities, efficient big men Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis have the paint clogged. Last season, Turner flexed his elite defense by leading the league in blocks (2.7 BPG), while Sabonis nearly averaged a double-double (14.1 PPG, 9.3 RPG) despite only playing 24.8 minutes per game.

ANOTHER AWFUL DEFENSIVE PERFORMANCE

Wrong place, wrong time… or is it? The Minnesota Timberwolves faced a vengeful Golden State Warriors team this past Friday and got buried by a hail of threes, leading to a 143-123 blowout loss. One may wonder, however, if it’s just their same old, awful defense showing up.

The Timberwolves’ terrible defense has long been a hot topic among the media and fans. After all, in Karl-Anthony Towns’ four seasons in Minnesota, the team has ranked 27th or worse in defensive rating three times. This past season, they also finished in the bottom five in threes, assists, and offensive rebounds allowed.

Nevertheless, Towns will continue carrying Minnesota’s torch. Outside of his suspect defense, the big man is a proven stat-sheet filler – a fantasy basketball darling, if you will. His career numbers against the Pacers alone is a good indicator too. In eight total match-ups, Towns has averaged 26.4 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists per game on an efficient 56.8% shooting.

PREDICTION:

The Pacers collect another victory through a balanced offensive attack and defensive effort. Expect to see Turner, Sabonis, and Warren to go toe-to-toe with the Wolves’ firepower and pull away in the second half. Look for Warren to have a big scoring day.