Sky Sports showing a record 48 weekend NBA Primetime games in the 2019-20 season
Monday 4 November 2019 04:24, UK
Who will prevail in this weekend's NBA Sunday primetime game live on Sky Sports? Ovie Soko previews Bulls @ Pacers.
Chicago have decent pieces and came into the season considered as a team poised to take a step forward but they've lost four of their opening five games.
Rookie guard Coby White has impressed me. I think he is a guy who plays with a lot of energy and confidence and he will only get better. Otto Porter was a nice pick-up for them last year and he gave them extra scoring punch., but he hasn't started the season well.
On current evidence, I just don't know how much they will improve on last year's 22-win season.
The Pacers don't have a lot of experience among the active players who have huge roles on the team. They don't have a superstar in this league without Victor Oladipo (who has been out since last January through injury).
That means there is a lot of pressure on their summer signing Malcolm Brogdon to carry the load. This is his fourth year in the league. Is he ready to jump into that Oladipo go-to role? I don't know. He is going to have to grow into being 'the guy'.
Brogdon has come from a situation in Milwaukee where he wasn't the first scoring option. All of a sudden, he has jumped from being in a supporting role with the Bucks to 'we need you to score 20+ every night' for Indiana.
When the opposing defense is loading up and focused on you, it's a very hard role to jump into. And you can see the effect of that in his field goal percentages which have dropped from last season.
When guys become the focal point of the opponent's defense, those percentages, generally, will drop. You're going to start seeing different defensive coverages and you're not getting the easy-rhythm shots you're accustomed to getting early in games to get yourself going.
Like the Bulls, the Pacers are in the process of trying to figure things out and find their identity this year. Which players are going to fill which roles? Who will take on the responsibility of moving into bigger roles? We'll find out more on Sunday night.
