No. 3 – Indiana Pacers
Here’s another tough picture, Hornets fans. The Indiana Pacers are currently without Victor Oladipo as he recovers from a serious quad injury, but they added Malcolm Brogdon and Jeremy Lamb in free agency. Those are two of the most underrated pickups of the off-season, if you ask me.
Lamb was a beast for the Hornets last season, and cashed in signing a three-year deal with Indiana. He’s more than capable of filling the void at shooting guard until Oladipo comes back. Lamb will then shift to a sixth man role, like he had with Charlotte last season. He thrived in that role, and will be a perfect fit in Indiana.
Brogdon was the big get, though. Brogdon was incredible for the Bucks last season and will play a major role in Indiana. He’s not flashy, but he’s efficient and can fill it up. I think he has a chance to be an All-Star this season now that he will have more touches. Those two signings keep them at the top of the Eastern Conference, even after losing Bojan Bogdanovic to Utah.
Indiana has been one of the most consistent teams in the league for years now, and that will continue in 2019-20. They play hard, they play defense and they play together. They disappointed in the playoffs last season, so we’ll see if they can bounce back and make a run this time around.