October 4, 2018; Houston, TX, USA; Victor Oladipo (4), goalkeeper of the Indiana Pacers, dribbled the ball in the third quarter against the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports(Photo: Troy Taormina, Troy Taormina – USA TODAY HUI Sports)

How important should the statistics be taken seriously in a Pacers opening game? They should not be over-analyzed because it's more about Thursday's 110-100 victory over the Houston Rockets.

Victor Oladipo (24 points) led all scorers, Myles Turner and Bojan Bogdanovic (11 points each), while the rotating reserves Domantas Sabonis (15 points, 12 rebounds) and Cory Joseph (14 points) were live reserves and without rotation TJ Leaf (13 points, 12 rebounds, four assists) and Edmond Sumner (13 points) performed well.

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The next game will be held on Saturday at Memphis Grizzlies:

>> The offense was disjointed in the first period and although the Pacers were leading 54-48, they were mainly dependent on the isolation of Oladipo who saved them. He had 19 points at half-time, but that's not the best for the 82 games. Doug McDermott was motionless in the corners and only tried one shot in 17 minutes in the first period. The only bucket made by McDermott in the game (1-by-8) came out of a back door for a lay-up.

>> Sumner, who has a double-choice contract, is the best qualified goaltender. He can play on or off the ball and was placed in a position similar to that of Oladipo who sat, isolating over the 3-point arc, scoring 1 to 1 and thus creating impossible marks in the traffic. Sumner must prove his effectiveness when the defenses discover his strengths, reduce his coverage to cut the edge and make him shoot at a distance. This was the vulnerability of his game.

>> Turner played under the edge and lost his gaze from a distance. He was fragile at first, but then asserted that the Rockets allowed Chris Paul and James Harden to replace him from below. He was only 2-in-5 in the first half and did not always show enough depth, but he left. He went to the brink with force on a dunk tomahawk via a Leaf pass and twice blocked Marquese Chriss during a run in the second half. Turner opened the scoring to 3 in the third and instead of shooting, he went into the arc to take a long two-pointer that was no longer a less effective shot. He may be the center that coach Nate McMillan wants him to be, but he must seize this opportunity when it needs to be. Shot attempted no 3 in the match. Spacing on the ground with Leaf was not good, especially in the first half, which created a blockage in the paint. Despite the chatter from all the training camps that Turner shares the word with Sabonis, this did not happen.

Leaf had the patience he lacked during most of the Las Vegas summer league when he appeared hasty and leaving shots at the edge of the ground. When Leaf, who started for Thad Young (foot), was out of balance with the guards, he took his time, pulled them back and put the ball on the ledge (and tipped his fault) or found his teammate on the weak point or flashing . at the post office.

>> Sabonis pummeled the Rockets, who seemed not to understand that forcing him to the left hand is his strength, that they defend him with a small or big size. He turned to help the guards prevent the penetration of the dribble and returned to his place under the rim to protect him as well. While he said that he was working on his 3 point shot, he did not attempt it.

>> Tyreke Evans (right foot) absent, there was no chance to see how he would play against Oladipo, who is the pivot of what should be a new attack. Bogdanovic was placed in certain places to beat the fence and, although he could put the ball on the ground, he is a dribbler in a straight line for the most part and his ability to end in the traffic is not as effective.