How long has it been since the Indiana Pacers swept a Western road trip of four games or more? Longer than Reggie Miller's memory. Or career, for that matter. "I don't think I've ever done it," said Miller, the 17th-year veteran.
No, he hasn't. But that doesn't begin to describe the historic opportunity that awaits the Pacers when they play Denver tonight at the Pepsi Center.
No team in the Pacers' NBA history, which began in 1976, has escaped an unabbreviated Western road trip without a blemish. Technically, neither did any team in the franchise's ABA history, which began in 1967.
The ABA schedule-makers had little regard for geography, and tended to mix East and West. The 1969-70 Pacers team swept a five-game trip that took them through Carolina, Miami, Kentucky, Los Angeles and Denver, but only two of those games were against Western teams.
The 1987-88 NBA team, on which Miller was a rookie, swept a three-game swing through Los Angeles, Golden State and Phoenix. The truer test, however, comes in the longer journeys. The Pacers have managed winning records on Western trips of at least four games just six times in Miller's career.
That leaves an impressive niche to be filled tonight, although it's not foremost on the minds of the Pacers.
"I don't want to talk too much about it," said Jermaine O'Neal, who led Friday's 96-88 win over Utah with 30 points and 10 rebounds, tying Dale Davis for the franchise's NBA career record in double-doubles (158). "But if we do what we've been doing the last three games, we should have no problem."
The more meaningful point to the Pacers is how they have handled the competition from the Western Conference. The West is widely regarded as superior to the East, but the Pacers have bucked the stereotype. They are 17-6 against Western teams, 7-5 on the road. No other Eastern team has done better.
The best Western teams, however, have been even more successful against Eastern competition. Sacramento is 20-3, Minnesota is 23-5 and the Lakers are 19-5.
To the Pacers, being labeled as the best Eastern team is like being regarded as the tallest person in a crowd of short people. Their goal is to transcend their conference, not rule it.
Their 46-16 record is the best in the league, thanks to Sacramento's loss at Miami Saturday. That won't mean a thing when the playoffs begin, but for now it qualifies them for membership among the contenders.
"A lot of people want to make a big deal about the East and West," Ron Artest said. "We want to make a big deal out of the whole league. We want to beat whoever we play next."
Scot Pollard is the Pacers' resident expert on comparisons of the two conferences, having played the previous five seasons in Sacramento. He believes the West's superiority is exaggerated.
"It's kind of a bandwagon thing," he said. "It gets talked about so much it kind of builds on itself. It's not the quality of play, it's the style. There are good players on every team."
So, the Pacers would like to sweep their trip. More important, they would like to further establish themselves as a legitimate title contender. Most importantly, however, they would like to win their next game. And just keep doing that.
"I don't want to get too high or too low," Miller said. "Anytime you start thinking you're great, there's something lurking behind one of those doors. We're going to keep it on an even keel and take it game by game. I know it's a cliché, but we don't want to get too full of ourselves. We just have to continue to get better."
http://www.indystar.com
No, he hasn't. But that doesn't begin to describe the historic opportunity that awaits the Pacers when they play Denver tonight at the Pepsi Center.
No team in the Pacers' NBA history, which began in 1976, has escaped an unabbreviated Western road trip without a blemish. Technically, neither did any team in the franchise's ABA history, which began in 1967.
The ABA schedule-makers had little regard for geography, and tended to mix East and West. The 1969-70 Pacers team swept a five-game trip that took them through Carolina, Miami, Kentucky, Los Angeles and Denver, but only two of those games were against Western teams.
The 1987-88 NBA team, on which Miller was a rookie, swept a three-game swing through Los Angeles, Golden State and Phoenix. The truer test, however, comes in the longer journeys. The Pacers have managed winning records on Western trips of at least four games just six times in Miller's career.
That leaves an impressive niche to be filled tonight, although it's not foremost on the minds of the Pacers.
"I don't want to talk too much about it," said Jermaine O'Neal, who led Friday's 96-88 win over Utah with 30 points and 10 rebounds, tying Dale Davis for the franchise's NBA career record in double-doubles (158). "But if we do what we've been doing the last three games, we should have no problem."
The more meaningful point to the Pacers is how they have handled the competition from the Western Conference. The West is widely regarded as superior to the East, but the Pacers have bucked the stereotype. They are 17-6 against Western teams, 7-5 on the road. No other Eastern team has done better.
The best Western teams, however, have been even more successful against Eastern competition. Sacramento is 20-3, Minnesota is 23-5 and the Lakers are 19-5.
To the Pacers, being labeled as the best Eastern team is like being regarded as the tallest person in a crowd of short people. Their goal is to transcend their conference, not rule it.
Their 46-16 record is the best in the league, thanks to Sacramento's loss at Miami Saturday. That won't mean a thing when the playoffs begin, but for now it qualifies them for membership among the contenders.
"A lot of people want to make a big deal about the East and West," Ron Artest said. "We want to make a big deal out of the whole league. We want to beat whoever we play next."
Scot Pollard is the Pacers' resident expert on comparisons of the two conferences, having played the previous five seasons in Sacramento. He believes the West's superiority is exaggerated.
"It's kind of a bandwagon thing," he said. "It gets talked about so much it kind of builds on itself. It's not the quality of play, it's the style. There are good players on every team."
So, the Pacers would like to sweep their trip. More important, they would like to further establish themselves as a legitimate title contender. Most importantly, however, they would like to win their next game. And just keep doing that.
"I don't want to get too high or too low," Miller said. "Anytime you start thinking you're great, there's something lurking behind one of those doors. We're going to keep it on an even keel and take it game by game. I know it's a cliché, but we don't want to get too full of ourselves. We just have to continue to get better."
http://www.indystar.com
