Three ABA championships. 111 playoff wins. 20 playoff series won. 38 all-star appearances. 1,652 wins since 1967.
Add up all the statistics and it catapults the Indiana Pacers into one of the top 10 best franchises in NBA history, according to ESPN.com. In a new feature unveiled today, ESPN’s John Hollinger, the resident stat guru, put together a formula to ultimately decide the best franchises to ever wear an NBA logo. Out of the 30 teams still in existence, the Pacers rank at No. 9.
Of course, the ABA days (which only get half points in categories) and the 90’s teams helped the franchise overcome its terrible 1980’s and late-2000’s squads. After discrediting the Pacers for never having any superstars and stat fillers, except for coach Larry Bird (1997-2000), Hollinger writes the following:
Nonetheless, Indiana has had quite a bit of team success thanks to a series of ensemble casts. The Pacers made the playoffs 18 times in one 19-year stretch, and two teams in particular stand out: a 61-win team that lost to eventual champion Detroit in the 2004 conference finals, and Bird's 2000 Eastern Conference champions that took the Lakers to six games in the Finals. Unfortunately, Indy never got over the hump, and the Nov. 19, 2004, brawl in the Palace of Auburn Hills marked the unofficial end of that group's run as contenders.”
Click here for a rundown on how Hollinger scored each category.
Pacers fans will surely argue about Hollinger’s decision to name Larry Brown as the best coach in franchise history, leaving legend Slick Leonard and Bird out of the discussion. Hollinger also picks the 1969-70 (59-25, ABA champions) squad as the best team in franchise history. Hollinger wrote that the Pacers’ ABA teams featured “a band of scruffy-but-likable types” who led the team to three titles in four years.
Eight teams were ranked higher than the Pacers. Historic franchises, such as the Lakers (No. 1), Celtics (2), Spurs (3), Bulls (4) and 76ers (6), all fell in the top 10. The Pacers joined the Suns (5) and the Jazz (7) as the lone top-10 teams to never win a NBA title. Hollinger ranked Indiana ahead of several other winning franchises, such as the Rockets (10), Bucks (11), Pistons (13), Knicks (16) and Cavs (19).
For more info: Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star tries to talk Pacers fans down from the ledge by announcing that some big name draft prospects will be working out for the team on Monday.
Comments
Sean has used good historical documentation to make his points.
Slick Leonard should be rated higher!
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