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Although the Indiana Pacers still hold the eastern Conference’s best record, their team president Larry Bird thinks they should be playing at a higher level more consistently.
Bird expressed his concerns about the Pacers in a recent interview with the Indy Star.
“A lot of times, we don’t take the fight to them (the opponent),” Bird said Tuesday, before the Pacers snapped a four-game losing streak by defeating the Celtics at home. “A lot of times we sit back and wait and see how it goes. And that was the case even when we were winning a lot of games early in the season. We’ve got to be mentally prepared to really go after the teams we’re playing again. We can’t have the mindset it’s just another game; it’s a very important game. All of them are.”
“People ask me if I’m mad at them,” Bird said. “I’m not mad. I’m disappointed.”
The Pacers started the season as one of the NBA’s hottest teams but has tapered off of late. Their struggles at this point in the season could be attributed to a number of things, from fatigue of their stars play heavy roles to make up for their subpar bench play to Indiana possibly getting comfortable after being atop the East’s standings for so long.
With the playoffs approaching the Pacers need to take their play up a notch if they plan to dethrone the Miami Heat. Hopefully the addition of Andrew Bynum into the lineup and recent acquisition Evan Turner being able to contribute off the bench will help. If not, Indiana could be primed fr an upset come postseason.
-ALR