The Indiana Pacers don't learn.  With the season winding down and the lottery being the only thing for fans to get excited about these days, the Pacers keep notching up pointless win after win.  The latest victim is the Sacramento Kings, whom the Pacers defeated 102-95 in a come-from-behind victory.

That makes it eight consecutive home wins and six of seven.

Danny Granger scored 25 points in the second half to lead all scorers with 33, and added 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.  Troy Murphy had his usual double-double with 19 and 13.  Hibbert and Watson both chipped in with 10 points apiece.

A couple of weeks ago, I was looking at the mock drafts based on standings, and the Indiana Pacers were in line to get a top five pick, possibly even the big one (John Wall) or two (Evan Turner).  Now, with other teams tanking and the Pacers rolling off victories, the team has dropped to the tenth pick (based on standings), and in the coming draft, that is a huge difference in terms of talent.

Think about it.  Out of all the teams that are not fighting to make the playoffs or improve their seed position, only the Pacers have a winning percentage over 50% over their last 10 games.  7 out of 10, which makes them by far the hottest non-playoff team in the league.  Just sayin'.

Can't say it was a surprise.  Good to see the Pacers back on track in their hunt for a solid lottery pick.  Granger, Murphy and Watson really shouldn't be playing 35+ minutes a game at this stage of the season!  Come on!

Danny Granger, 44 points, career high.  122-106 over Utah Jazz.  Fifth straight win.  Decent lottery pick flying out the window.

The Indiana Pacers are on a roll.  Four straight and five of six.  The latest victim today, the appalling Washington Wizards, who stumbled to their 13th consecutive loss.

Danny Granger had his third consecutive 30+ game with 31 points, 12-20 from the floor including 4-5 from three point range.  Troy Murphy had 12 points and 19 rebounds, all on the defensive end.  But the biggest surprise was Josh McRoberts, who started in the place of the injured Roy Hibbert (smacked in the jaw in last game) and scored 14 points and grabbed 12 boards, with 5 offensive.

It's easy to get carried away with this current hot streak, which is, let's face it, too little too late.  The Pacers are not going to make the playoffs this season, and all this streak is going to do is ruin the chances of a better draft pick.  Besides, out of the four wins, two games were against the Pistons, whom the Pacers swept this season, and one against the Wizards.  The only upset win was against the Thunder.  So let's not start pretending these wins are anything more than they are.

Nevertheless, it is good to see the team play with passion, as much as it hurts to watch the probability of a top five pick slipping out the back door.

This is what Granger had to say: "I really don't believe in trying not to win.  I don't even know how you can say that about a team, tell them not to win. It goes against every principle of sportsmanship that's out there."

Danny, it's not like that.  No one is telling the Pacers to lose games on purpose.  But play the young guys significant minutes, rest the starters.  See what happens.  As much as I admire Danny's attitude, it's affecting the future of the franchise.  The Pacers have been stuck in mediocrity for long enough.

In a season as horrible as this one, it's good to see the Indiana Pacers at least have a team to whip.  And no team is more fitting than the Detroit Pistons, the main reason for the Pacers' demise over the last few years.

The Pacers ended their 9-game road skid by beating the Pistons 98-83, officially eliminating Detroit from the playoffs and sweeping the season series.

Granger had 32 points, Murphy had 10 and 12, Rush had 20, Dunleavy had 13, and Watson had 13 asssists.

For the first time this season (since maybe the 5-game streak at the very beginning), it looks like the Pacers are hitting their stride.  Granger is playing well, Murphy back to being a solid double-double machine, Rush and Hibbert are playing with more confidence, Earl Watson is making timely passes, and Mike Dunleavy and Dahntay Jones are providing sparks off the bench.  Unfortunately, this is the WRONG time to be winning!

The Pacers are now 25-46 and have somehow managed to crawl from the 14th spot in the East to the 11th.  Well done guys.  When every other cellar dwelling team is tanking for the future, the Pacers are fighting for pride, and a crappy draft pick.  Again.