Indiana Adds To Their Bench

The Indiana Pacers finally got rid of their bench problem. They replaced Tyler Hansbrough, D.J. Augustin and Jeff Pendergraph with Chris Copeland, C.J Watson, and now Luis Scola. All three should be upgrades this season. Scola will be a perfect fit next to Hibbert or West, being able to play a high-low with both, or spread floor with his excellent mid-range jumper. And if one gets in foul trouble or tired, Scola can play big minutes. Not only will this decrease the chances of injury for the big men, but gives an excellent three-man rotation down low, with Ian Mahinmi still on the bench to add more depth. 

Gerald Green was a huge bust for the Pacers who still has two years and $7 million total left on his deal. Copeland has a much more reliable outside shot than Green, who never seemed to get regular rotation minutes in his only year with Indiana. D.J. Augustin also didn't pan out as expected last season, but C.J Watson comes in with playoff experience with both Brooklyn and Chicago. 

Indiana has impressively retooled their roster over the summer, a big problem exposed in the playoffs. The starters had to play big minutes and Roy Hibbert got in foul trouble in a key game against Miami in the Eastern Conference Finals, and no player on the bench really stepped up to help. Scola solves that problem. The team also didn't have very many spot up outside shooters, but adding Copeland to a multi-year deal will help in combination with Danny Granger, who should be coming back strong. Either Granger or Lance Stephenson will be on the bench and both would make an excellent sixth man. The depth chart should looking something like this:

PG: Hill, Watson
SG: Granger, Stephenson
SF: George, Copeland
PF: West, Scola
C: Hibbert, Mahimni

Two-deep at every position is something most teams can't boast and a ten-man rotation will help with progressive fatigue going into the playoffs. Having already pushed the Miami Heat to 7 games in the Eastern Conference Finals, this could finally be the Pacer's year to win the East.