It's one of the oddest streaks in the NBA, the type of factoid that doesn't seem believable at first and might even prompt some to try to disprove it. But after 33 years, it's about to come to an end.
On Tuesday at the NBA draft lottery, the Indiana Pacers are guaranteed to get their first draft pick inside the top 10 since 1989. That's not a typo. It hasn't happened in any of the current Pacers players' lifetimes.
George McCloud is that trivia answer of who the last one was; he was drafted fourth, a year after the Pacers selected Rik Smits with the No. 2 overall pick in 1988.
More than three decades later, the Pacers' 2021-22 season was ravaged with injuries, players missing nearly 400 games combined. Forward T.J. Warren sat out the entire season and key players Myles Turner, Malcolm Brogdon and Chris Duarte missed huge chunks. The Pacers won 25 games -- their lowest total since 1984-85.
