When: April 10, 2016; 6:00 PM EST
Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, IN
TV: YES Network
Radio: CBS 880 AM
- The Nets have lost seven consecutive games and, with Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young shut down for the season, might not win a game the rest of the way. Coincidentally, their opponent tonight — the Pacers — is who they last beat, back on March 26 at Barclays. Six Nets scored in double figures that game as Brooklyn hung 120 on Indiana. That would be a shocking feat for today’s Nets.
- Indiana has won three of its last four and, with a win today, would clinch an Eastern Conference playoff berth. The Pacers are currently the No. 8 seed, 2.5 games ahead of the Bulls, but are just a half-game behind the No. 7 Pistons. Detroit doesn’t play again until Tuesday night against the Heat, so a Pacers win would put them in a virtual tie for that spot. Whichever team loses that battle will likely have to play the Cavaliers in a first round series as opposed to the Raptors.
- There’s not a whole lot to say about the Nets right now because their top players are resting and these remaining games are solely for evaluation purposes for Sean Marks and his front office. There are a lot of roster decisions to be made with this team in the offseason, such as what to do with impending free agents Markel Brown and Sergey Karasev, to name a few. It’s also an important time for the younger guy who will be around for at least next year, like Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (not playing today due to rest) and Chris McCullough.
- Also, to make matters worse for the Nets, they’re probably going to give the Celtics the third-best chances for the No. 1 overall pick in this May’s draft lottery. With the 76ers and Lakers too far below Brooklyn to catch up, the Nets will either have the third- or fourth-worst record in the NBA. For awhile, it seemed as if they’d be able to hold off the Phoenix Suns, but thanks to their recent skid, Brooklyn is a half-game behind the Suns. So, if Phoenix ends up with a better record, the Celtics will have a 15.6 percent chance of getting the first pick. If not, it’s only 11.9 percent for Boston.
Probable lineups
BKN- Shane Larkin (PG), Wayne Ellington (SG), Bojan Bogdanovic (SF), Chris McCullough (PF), Thomas Robinson (C)
IND- George Hill (PG), Monta Ellis (SG), Paul George (SF), Lavoy Allen (PF), Ian Mahinmi (C)
Final thoughts
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is out today (rest) so Chris McCullough will get his second start in a row. Considering the Pacers have a lot to play for — and the Nets have nothing — this one might get ugly quickly.
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