Entering tonight’s game against the Utah Jazz at 10-6, the Indiana Pacers have largely succeeded in taking advantage of the league’s easiest schedule through the first month. How they got there was a bit unorthodox in relation to their extensive injury reports, but they have checked all the boxes from a win-loss standpoint in terms of weathering the early portions of the season without Victor Oladipo.
Through the first 16 games, the Pacers have played just two winning teams; Houston and Milwaukee. Their lone matchups against both resulted in losses, but that back-to-back coming during the height of Indiana’s injury woes took away from each game in terms of getting a feel for where they might rank against the league’s better opponents.