16. Indiana Pacers
In drafting this post I must have moved the Indiana Pacers up and down more than any other team in my rankings. It’s just impossible to be sure what they are going to look like because we don’t know what Victor Oladipo is going to look like coming off of his injury. If Oladipo comes back and is at the same all-star level that he was playing at before the injury, then this will be a really solid team.
Their supporting cast is really good with guys like Malcolm Brogdon, Myles Turner, and T.J. Warren who will all fill valuable roles around Oladipo. They’ll be well-coached and tough on defense thanks to coach Nate McMillan, but their upside will always be capped by not having a true superstar. That’s no disrespect to Oladipo, but he’s not one of those guys, even when healthy.
15. Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks quickly assembled one of the best young cores in the league and should only continue to get better. Trae Young, De’Andre Hunter, John Collins, Cam Reddish, and Kevin “The Red Mamba” Huerter will be one of the most fun teams to watch over the next few years. The fear for the Hawks would be falling into a Timberwolves type of rut.
I’m old enough to remember when everyone thought the Timberwolves were two or three years away from being a contender, only to see them never really come close. I don’t think that will happen to this group, but it’s difficult to put them much higher on this list when they have such little experience as a group. It looks nice on paper, but I need to see it first.