The Indiana Pacers were cruising along with one of the NBA’s best records up until Victor Oladipo’s injury. Tanking clearly wasn’t on their mind before then, and even after, Kevin Pritchard stated the Pacers wouldn’t be taking that road.
As seductive as any vice can be, tanking certainly entered the minds of Pacers fans and the intoxicating hope of a higher draft pick was coursing through their veins. Hope is a drug for basketball fans, no matter what the odds are.
But that’s the thing, the odds of Indiana getting a lottery pick from that moment on were slim to none.