Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
The Indiana Pacers are on the brink of what could be a very exciting season, and have undoubtedly become legitimate title contenders. They added some key players over the offseason to add to their already impressive roster, but don’t seem to have a definite lineup just yet. When will they get one, and who will be in it?
The Pacers may be one of the deepest teams in the league, which is a good problem to have right now. The team doesn’t really know who they want starting. Danny Granger will be returning from injury, and they added Chris Copeland, Luis Scola and C.J. Watson over the offseason. Those are four pretty good players, and after yesterday’s media day, it seems they could make setting a definite lineup difficult. Granger was a starter before he got hurt, but after Lance Stephenson‘s eye-opening improvement last season, he may be battling Granger for that starting spot. Well, according to head coach Frank Vogel, there may not be an actual competition. In the team’s media day Friday, Vogel said he will continue to stagger lineups and is excited about their depth. Let’s look at a few possible lineups they could use.
Lineup 1: PG George Hill, SG Paul George, SF Danny Granger, PF David West, C Roy Hibbert
Lineup 2: PG Hill, SG Stephenson, SF George, PF West, C Hibbert
Lineup 3: PG Stephenson, SG George, SF Granger, PF West, C Hibbert
Power forward and center are pretty much a guarantee with West and Hibbert, but the first three spots are definitely up for grabs. Indiana is so deep that it would be silly not to test all the possible lineups.
We don’t really know how long Vogel will take to find a final starting lineup, but no matter who they have in it, you can assume they will succeed just by seeing all the talent they have on their roster. It will surely be interesting to see all their staggered lineups throughout the preseason and the beginning of the regular season.
