Al Jefferson was in a blue practice jersey and Myles Turner was in a gray T-shirt. If it's true that you are what you wear, that means Jefferson is a starter and Turner is not ready to play.
But this was only Friday, and the Pacers had another 24 hours before playing at Washington on Saturday, so wardrobes could change quickly and dramatically. Roles, too.
Jefferson could be in the starting lineup for the second time as a Pacer and the first since Nov. 21 of last season when the Pacers meet the Wizards. But he hopes not.
"I hope Myles will be ready to play tomorrow, but if not I'll be ready to step up and play that role," he said.
While Jefferson filled in admirably in Thursday's loss to Toronto, with 20 points and 12 rebounds off the bench, the preferred starting lineup against the Wizards would include Turner. That likely will become a gametime decision, depending on the condition of his left ankle.
Turner sprained it three times against the Raptors, twice in the second quarter and then again in the fourth. It was a low ankle sprain, not the less desirable high ankle sprain as originally reported, and he felt better on Friday.
Better than he expected, in fact.
"The way our medical staff works, I've been able to get back pretty quickly from all my injuries," said Turner, who has missed 16 games this season because of injury. "Being a young guy, I guess I heal quickly. I'm just glad it's not as serious as it looked."
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"We were encouraged by what we saw," coach Nate McMillan said.
Turner said he definitely would play on Saturday if it was a playoff game. He still hopes to be able to go, given its importance. The Pacers are in third place in the Eastern Conference, one game ahead of the fifth-place Wizards and two up on sixth-place Philadelphia.
Seeding is important as it applies to gaining homecourt advantage in the opening round of the playoffs, but a healthy roster trumps all. Domantas Sabonis, who sprained his left ankle in Tuesday's victory at Philadelphia, missed Thursday's game, did not practice on Friday and has been ruled out of Saturday's game. He appears likely to miss Monday's game against the Lakers as well.
Fortunately for the Pacers, Jefferson is waiting in the wings. Ready and willing to step up, and more than able.
The 33-year-old Jefferson is out of the rotation when Turner and Sabonis are healthy but has played a vital role when needed. He's sat out 38 games this season but has scored in double figures six times in the 31 he's played. Adjust his stats to 36 minutes per game, and he averages 18.5 points and 10.4 rebounds.
"It's not that I can't play, I just don't play," he says.
Jefferson at least knows he'll play extensively on Saturday, either as a starter or Turner's backup. That's better than expecting not to play and then having to play, as happened in Philadelphia on Tuesday. He played 25 minutes on Thursday and jokes that he could have played 30 if necessary but adds, "I probably would have passed out right after the game, but I could have done it."
Jefferson once again showed an uncanny ability to score out of post-ups on Thursday, putting on a clinic for Raptors backup center Jakob Poeltl and the Bankers Life Fieldhouse audience. His footwork remains as agile in his 14th season as in his first, when he was a rookie straight out of high school in the 2004-05 season.
Asked if he believes he still can get off his shot against anyone, Jefferson thought back to his early seasons in the NBA, when he was beginning his career in Boston.
"I remember one guy when I first got in the league and played Indiana in the playoffs," he said. "It took me 2 ½ years to score on Jermaine O'Neal one on one. Once I got to the point I could score on him, I decided I wasn't going to ever let nobody have that much power on me again.
"So, to your question, Yes, I feel like I can at least get my shot off on anyone. Until I'm 38, 39 years old, I can still do that."
If nothing else, Jefferson is setting a good example for Turner, who is beginning to show a post-up game. Jefferson's footwork is to be idolized, and if at all possible, copied.
"What I'm so impressed with, no matter who's guarding him, he can get to his stuff," Turner said. "If it's a bigger guy, stronger guy, smaller guy, it doesn't really matter. He's going to get to his stuff."
Jefferson's play will be the least of the Pacers' concerns on Saturday. Their failure to execute late in Thursday's loss was a greater issue when they watched video on Friday morning. They lost a lead that peaked at 10 three minutes into the second half and were outscored 29-20 in the fourth quarter. They hit just 8-of-24 shots in that quarter as their offense stopped functioning and they allowed the Raptors to hit half of their 18 shot attempts.
Lance Stephenson took much of the blame for that. He had played well through the first three quarters with eight points and one turnover and started the fourth. Caught up in the emotion of the Raptors' comeback, however, he hit just one-of-three shots, had a passing turnover and committed two fouls, one of them a needless violation in the backcourt when he went for a steal.
McMillan pulled him from the game with 5:55 left and kept him on the bench the rest of the way.
"That fourth quarter, I put a lot of the blame on me," Stephenson said Friday. "I ain't going to put everything on me, but I was a part of it. Just got to get our composure and play the right way at all times.
"Sometimes when you're playing you don't feel it. And when you watch film, you're, Oh, I did that? I saw a lot of mistakes that I did that affected the team. I learn from it, correct it and on to the next."
Neither McMillan nor other players placed blame on Stephenson, however. The gist of their response to the morning's video session was that they had beaten themselves with their lack of execution on both ends of the court.
"We didn't execute," Darren Collison said. "We didn't do it with enough force. Didn't screen hard, didn't drive hard, didn't get to our spots hard."
They'll try to get back to that on Saturday. They hope to have Turner back in a starter's jersey. But they at least have the security of knowing Jefferson will be there, ready for whatever.
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Mark Montieth's book, "Reborn: The Pacers and the Return of Pro Basketball to Indianapolis," covers the formation and early seasons of the franchise. It is available at retail outlets throughout Indiana and online at sources such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
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