Pacers Fans Staying Loyal Despite George Injury

Mar 1, 2014; Boston, MA, USA; Indiana Pacers small forward Paul George (24) keeps the ball away from Boston Celtics small forward Jeff Green (8) during the fourth quarter of Indiana

The Indiana Pacers finally got their fans back last season after a long time of rebuilding their franchise from the days when they were putting a “thug” team on the court. They have put together a team that the fans are proud of, and those same fans appear to be rallying around the team despite the struggle that is likely coming this season. It appeared from reports coming out of Indianapolis just a few weeks ago that ticket sales were down after last seasons collapse and losing Lance Stephenson, but even after the Paul George injury it appears that ticket sales are staying up.

“I don’t think there’s any sense of doom and gloom. We’re not having people bail on us. The immediate reaction from our season ticket holders was that they’re rallying behind this team.” – Bill Benner

This is extremely good news for the team at this point in time, and hopefully it holds true throughout the course of the regular season. The Pacers are not going to be competing for a championship this season, but they still have a shot at making the playoffs if they can get a couple players to step up in a big way. Roy Hibbert and George Hill appear to be the two players that are most needed to come through with a big season, and that will be a very tough gamble for Indiana.

There have been reports throughout the past couple of weeks that the Pacers could look to make some major trades to shake up the roster, but Larry Bird and Frank Vogel don’t appear ready to go that route. If the Pacers don’t see themselves as serious contenders after a month or two of the season, they could very well begin to look for trades. The fans are still excited about the future of Pacers basketball, and will likely be in full support of the team as long as they keep out of off-the-court trouble.

Overall, this is very good news coming out of Indianapolis despite a terribly depressing offseason. While the Pacers are still talking about making the playoffs and contending with their current roster, it simply won’t happen. Don’t be surprised to see the Pacers looking like a brand new team at this point next season.