1986–87 Indiana Pacers season

NBA professional basketball team season March 2026 August 2023 Indiana Pacers 1987 41 41 Central 4 7 Jack Ramsay Donnie Walsh Market Square Arena WTTV–TV 4(Eddie Doucette, Bobby "Slick" Leonard) WIBC–AM 1070(Greg Papa) Lost to Atlanta Hawks in East First Round (1-3) INDNovember 2021The 1986–87 Indiana Pacers season was Indiana's 11th season in the NBA and 20th season as a franchise.1986-87 Indiana Pacers Roster and Stats https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/IND/1987.html 2021-11-16 Basketball-Reference.com en The Pacers would finish with only their second .500 or better season in the NBA (at 41–41) and make their second-ever postseason appearance as an NBA franchise, losing the opening round 3–1 in a five-game series to the Atlanta Hawks. Offseason Draft picks 1986 NBA draft This table only lists picks through the second round. Round Pick Player Position Nationality College 1 4 Chuck Person SF Auburn 2 26 Greg Dreiling C Kansas Roster Indiana Pacers #2C3294 #FFFFFF #FCC624 #2C3294 15 Ron Anderson basketball, born 1958 SF 6 7 215 Fresno State 54 Greg Dreiling C 7 1 250 Kansas 10 Vern Fleming PG 6 5 185 Georgia 55 Stuart Gray basketball C 7 0 235 UCLA 33 Clark Kellogg PF 6 7 225 Ohio State yes 25 John Long basketball, born 1956 SG 6 5 195 Detroit 44 Kyle Macy G 6 3 175 Kentucky 45 Chuck Person SF 6 8 220 Auburn 4 Clint Richardson SG 6 3 195 Seattle 31 Walker Russell PG 6 5 195 Western Michigan 40 Steve Stipanovich C 6 11 245 Missouri 23 Wayman Tisdale PF 6 9 240 Oklahoma 32 Herb Williams PF 6 10 242 Ohio State Jack Ramsay Mel Daniels Dick Harter Dave Twardzik Regular season Season standings IND IND z - clinched division title y - clinched division title x - clinched playoff spot Game log Regular season Indiana Pacers 1987 #000080 #FFD700 Total: 41–41 (Home: 28–13; Road: 13–28) Indiana Pacers October yes #FFD700 #000080 0 0 0 1 |- | 1 | October 31, 1986 | @ Philadelphia | L 104–108 | | | | The Spectrum | 0–1 Indiana Pacers November #FFD700 #000080 5 2 2 6 |- | 2 | November 1, 19867:30p.m. EST | Detroit | W 92–89 | Long (23) | Williams (10) | Williams (14) | Market Square Arena16,912 | 1–1 |- | 3 | November 4, 1986 | Philadelphia | W 125–121 (2OT) | | | | Market Square Arena | 2–1 |- | 4 | November 5, 19867:30p.m. EST | @ Boston | L 102–133 | Russell (16) | Williams (10) | Long,Russell (4) | Boston Garden14,890 | 2–2 |- | 5 | November 8, 1986 | San Antonio | W 130–97 | | | | Market Square Arena | 3–2 |- | 6 | November 11, 1986 | @ Milwaukee | L 94–102 | | | | MECCA Arena | 3–3 |- | 7 | November 13, 1986 | @ New Jersey | W 120–117 | | | | Brendan Byrne Arena | 4–3 |- | 8 | November 15, 1986 | Milwaukee | W 104–103 | | | | Market Square Arena | 5–3 |- | 9 | November 16, 1986 | @ Washington | L 111–124 | | | | Capital Centre | 5–4 |- | 10 | November 18, 1986 | @ L.A. Clippers | W 98–93 | | | | Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena | 6–4 |- | 11 | November 20, 1986 | @ Sacramento | L 83–92 | | | | ARCO Arena | 6–5 |- | 12 | November 22, 198610:30p.m. EST | @ Seattle | L 111–121 | Williams (32) | Person (9) | Fleming (8) | Seattle Center Coliseum6,399 | 6–6 |- | 13 | November 23, 1986 | @ Portland | L 95–108 | | | | Memorial Coliseum | 6–7 |- | 14 | November 26, 1986 | Houston | L 88–92 | | | | Market Square Arena | 6–8 |- | 15 | November 28, 1986 | Denver | W 126–102 | | | | Market Square Arena | 7–8 |- | 16 | November 30, 1986 | Portland | L 101–118 | | | | Market Square Arena | 7–9 Indiana Pacers December #FFD700 #000080 6 1 1 5 |- | 17 | December 2, 1986 | @ Milwaukee | L 88–95 | | | | MECCA Arena | 7–10 |- | 18 | December 3, 1986 | Washington | W 116–103 | | | | Market Square Arena | 8–10 |- | 19 | December 5, 1986 | Atlanta | W 119–113 | | | | Market Square Arena | 9–10 |- | 20 | December 10, 1986 | @ Philadelphia | L 112–122 | | | | The Spectrum | 9–11 |- | 21 | December 11, 1986 | Cleveland | W 115–94 | | | | Market Square Arena | 10–11 |- | 22 | December 13, 1986 | New Jersey | W 95–91 | | | | Market Square Arena | 11–11 |- | 23 | December 17, 19867:30p.m. EST | @ Boston | L 101–113 | Fleming.Person (21) | Williams (10) | Fleming,Person,Stipanovich (6) | Boston Garden14,890 | 11–12 |- | 24 | December 18, 1986 | Chicago | L 88–97 | | | | Market Square Arena | 11–13 |- | 25 | December 20, 1986 | @ New York | W 123–99 | | | | Madison Square Garden | 12–13 |- | 26 | December 21, 1986 | @ Cleveland | L 94–104 | | | | Richfield Coliseum | 12–14 |- | 27 | December 23, 19865:30p.m. EST | Detroit | W 111–98 | Stipanovich (29) | Stipanovich (10) | Fleming (11) | Market Square Arena11,860 | 13–14 |- | 28 | December 27, 1986 | @ Chicago | L 93–105 | | | | Chicago Stadium | 13–15 |- | 29 | December 30, 1986 | Cleveland | W 111–99 | | | | Market Square Arena | 14–15 Indiana Pacers January #FFD700 #000080 4 4 2 5 |- | 30 | January 2, 1987 | L.A. Clippers | W 116–106 | | | | Market Square Arena | 15–15 |- | 31 | January 5, 1987 | @ Dallas | W 144–135 | | | | Reunion Arena | 15–16 |- | 32 | January 6, 1987 | @ San Antonio | W 101–99 | | | | HemisFair Arena | 16–16 |- | 33 | January 8, 1987 | @ Houston | L 96–110 | | | | The Summit | 17–16 |- | 34 | January 10, 1987 | @ Utah | L 96–105 | | | | Salt Palace | 17–17 |- | 35 | January 13, 1987 | Philadelphia | L 94–101 | | | | Market Square Arena | 17–18 |- | 36 | January 15, 1987 | Washington | W 113–105 | | | | Market Square Arena | 18–18 |- | 37 | January 17, 1987 | Dallas | W 119–115 (2OT) | | | | Market Square Arena | 19–18 |- | 38 | January 19, 1987 | Chicago | W 109–95 | | | | Market Square Arena | 20–18 |- | 39 | January 21, 19877:30p.m. EST | @ Boston | L 100–130 | Williams (17) | Williams (10) | Fleming (7) | Boston Garden14,890 | 20–19 |- | 40 | January 22, 19878:00p.m. EST | L.A. Lakers | L 108–118 | Stipanovich (25) | Williams (15) | Fleming (6) | Market Square Arena16,912 | 20–20 |- | 41 | January 24, 1987 | Phoenix | L 103–104 | | | | Market Square Arena | 20–21 |- | 42 | January 27, 1987 | @ Atlanta | L 98–114 | | | | The Omni | 20–22 |- | 43 | January 30, 19877:30p.m. EST | Boston | L 94–100 | Person (26) | Williams (12) | Fleming (8) | Market Square Arena16,912 | 20–23 |- | 44 | January 31, 1987 | @ Cleveland | L 100–102 | | | | Richfield Coliseum | 20–24 Indiana Pacers February #FFD700 #000080 3 1 4 5 |- | 45 | February 3, 1987 | Philadelphia | L 94–99 | | | | Market Square Arena | 20–25 |- | 46 | February 5, 19877:30p.m. EST | @ Detroit | W 98–93 | Fleming (24) | Tisdale (13) | Fleming,Person (4) | Pontiac Silverdome13,410 | 21–25 |- align="center" |colspan="9" bgcolor="#bbcaff"|All-Star Break |- style="background:#cfc;" |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" |- | 47 | February 10, 1987 | @ Golden State | W 126–125 (OT) | | | | Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena | 22–25 |- | 48 | February 11, 1987 | @ Phoenix | W 121–105 | | | | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum | 23–25 |- | 49 | February 13, 198710:30p.m. EST | @ L.A. Lakers | L 108–113 | Fleming (19) | Person (9) | Fleming (7) | The Forum17,505 | 23–26 |- | 50 | February 14, 1987 | @ Denver | L 113–129 | | | | McNichols Sports Arena | 23–27 |- | 51 | February 16, 1987 | Golden State | W 112–93 | | | | Market Square Arena | 24–27 |- | 52 | February 18, 19877:30p.m. EST | Seattle | W 105–88 | Long (29) | Person (9) | Person (6) | Market Square Arena9,077 | 25–27 |- | 53 | February 20, 1987 | @ Atlanta | W 107–105 | | | | The Omni | 26–27 |- | 54 | February 22, 1987 | Sacramento | W 103–101 | | | | Market Square Arena | 27–27 |- | 55 | February 24, 1987 | @ Milwaukee | L 114–120 (2OT) | | | | MECCA Arena | 27–28 |- | 56 | February 26, 1987 | @ Washington | L 94–100 | | | | Capital Centre | 27–29 |- | 57 | February 27, 1987 | @ New Jersey | L 115–125 | | | | Brendan Byrne Arena | 27–30 Indiana Pacers March #FFD700 #000080 8 3 1 2 |- | 58 | March 1, 1987 | New York | W 122–115 (OT) | | | | Market Square Arena | 28–30 |- | 59 | March 3, 1987 | Atlanta | L 108–109 | | | | Market Square Arena | 28–31 |- | 60 | March 7, 1987 | Milwaukee | L 120–124 | | | | Market Square Arena | 28–32 |- | 61 | March 9, 1987 | Utah | W 107–102 | | | | Market Square Arena | 29–32 |- | 62 | March 11, 19877:30p.m. EST | Detroit | L 98–107 | Long,Tisdale (15) | Stipanoich,Tisdale (8) | Richardson (7) | Market Square Arena9,063 | 29–33 |- | 63 | March 13, 19877:30p.m. EST | Boston | W 116–109 | Person (24) | Stipanovich (12) | Fleming (8) | Market Square Arena16,912 | 30–33 |- | 64 | March 15, 1987 | New Jersey | W 123–99 | | | | Market Square Arena | 31–33 |- | 65 | March 16, 19877:30p.m. EST | @ Detroit | L 95–115 | Long (17) | Person (10) | Fleming,Russell (5) | Pontiac Silverdome15,348 | 31–34 |- | 66 | March 19, 1987 | @ New York | L 105–111 (OT) | | | | Madison Square Garden | 31–35 |- | 67 | March 21, 1987 | Cleveland | W 77–76 | | | | Market Square Arena | 32–35 |- | 68 | March 23, 1987 | Washington | W 101–92 | | | | Market Square Arena | 33–35 |- | 69 | March 25, 1987 | Milwaukee | W 125–108 | | | | Market Square Arena | 34–35 |- | 70 | March 27, 1987 | New York | W 100–91 | | | | Market Square Arena | 35–35 |- | 71 | March 28, 1987 | @ Atlanta | W 120–114 | | | | The Omni | 36–35 Indiana Pacers April #FFD700 #000080 2 2 3 4 |- | 72 | April 1, 1987 | Chicago | W 99–94 | | | | Market Square Arena | 37–35 |- | 73 | April 2, 19877:30p.m. EST | @ Detroit | L 73–119 | Stipanovich (12) | Stipanovich (8) | Fleming (6) | Pontiac Silverdome25,778 | 37–36 |- | 74 | April 4, 1987 | @ New York | L 108–112 | | | | Madison Square Garden | 37–37 |- | 75 | April 7, 1987 | New Jersey | W 128–114 | | | | Market Square Arena | 38–37 |- | 76 | April 9, 1987 | @ Cleveland | L 99–111 | | | | Richfield Coliseum | 38–38 |- | 77 | April 10, 1987 | @ Washington | W 115–101 | | | | Capital Centre | 39–38 |- | 78 | April 12, 1987 | @ Chicago | L 95–116 | | | | Chicago Stadium | 39–39 |- | 79 | April 13, 1987 | Atlanta | L 101–102 | | | | Market Square Arena | 39–40 |- | 80 | April 15, 19877:30p.m. EST | Boston | L 85–108 | Long (23) | Stipanovich (9) | Fleming (7) | Market Square Arena16,912 | 39–41 |- | 81 | April 17, 1987 | @ Philadelphia | W 115–111 | | | | The Spectrum | 40–41 |- | 82 | April 18, 1987 | @ New Jersey | W 112–103 | | | | Brendan Byrne Arena | 41–41 IND 1987 Playoffs Indiana Pacers 1987 yes #000080 #FFD700 Indiana Pacers Eastern Conference First Round no yes yes #FFD700 #000080 1 1 0 2 |- | 1 | April 24, 1987 | @ Atlanta | L 94–110 | Steve Stipanovich (22) | Steve Stipanovich (13) | Vern Fleming (6) | The Omni16,522 | 0–1 |- | 2 | April 26, 1987 | @ Atlanta | L 93–94 | Chuck Person (24) | Herb Williams (8) | Williams, Fleming (4) | The Omni16,522 | 0–2 |- | 3 | April 29, 1987 | Atlanta | W 96–87 | Chuck Person (23) | Chuck Person (17) | Chuck Person (7) | Market Square Arena12,303 | 1–2 |- | 4 | May 1, 1987 | Atlanta | L 97–101 | Chuck Person (40) | Vern Fleming (11) | Vern Fleming (8) | Market Square Arena14,039 | 1–3 |- IND 1987 yes Player statistics Regular season Player POS Position GP Games played GS Games starter MP Minutes played REB Rebounds AST Assists STL Steals BLK Blocks PTS Points MPG Minutes per game RPG Rebounds per game APG Assists per game SPG Steals per game BPG Blocks per game PPG Points per gameVern FlemingPG82 82 2,549 334 473 109 18 980 31.1 4.1 5.8 1.3 .2 12.0Chuck PersonSF82 78 2,956 677 295 90 16 1,541 36.0 8.3 3.6 1.1 .2 18.8Steve StipanovichC 81 81 2,761 670 180 106 97 1,072 34.1 8.3 2.2 1.3 1.2 13.2Wayman TisdalePF 81 15 2,159 475 117 50 26 1,174 26.7 5.9 1.4 .6 .3 14.5John Long basketball playerSG 80 68 2,265 217 258 96 8 1,218 28.3 2.7 3.2 1.2 .1 15.2Clint RichardsonSG 78 14 1,396 143 241 49 7 501 17.9 1.8 3.1 .6 .1 6.4Kyle MacyPG 76 0 1,250 113 197 59 7 376 16.4 1.5 2.6 .8 .1 4.9Herb WilliamsPF 74 67 2,526 543 174 59 93 1,101 34.1 7.3 2.4 .8 1.3 14.9Ron Anderson basketball, born 1958SF 63 0 721 151 54 31 3 363 11.4 2.4 .9 .5 .0 5.8Stuart Gray basketballC 55 1 456 129 26 10 28 110 8.3 2.3 .5 .2 .5 2.0Walker RussellPG 48 0 511 55 129 20 5 157 10.6 1.1 2.7 .4 .1 3.3Greg DreilingC 24 0 128 43 7 2 2 42 5.3 1.8 .3 .1 .1 1.8Michael Brooks basketballSF 10 0 148 28 11 9 0 33 14.8 2.8 1.1 .9 .0 3.3Peter VerhoevenPF 5 0 44 7 2 2 1 10 8.8 1.4 .4 .4 .2 2.0Clark KelloggPF 4 4 60 11 6 5 0 20 15.0 2.8 1.5 1.3 .0 5.0 † Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Pacers only. Playoffs Player POS Position GP Games played GS Games starter MP Minutes played REB Rebounds AST Assists STL Steals BLK Blocks PTS Points MPG Minutes per game RPG Rebounds per game APG Assists per game SPG Steals per game BPG Blocks per game PPG Points per gameChuck PersonSF4 4 159 33 20 5 2 108 39.8 8.3 5.0 1.3 .5 27.0Steve StipanovichC4 4 149 30 3 3 2 55 37.3 7.5 .8 .8 .5 13.8Vern FlemingPG4 4 141 26 24 4 1 49 35.3 6.5 6.0 1.0 .3 12.3Herb WilliamsPF4 4 134 20 7 0 1 47 33.5 5.0 1.8 .0 .3 11.8John Long basketball playerSG4 4 109 6 9 6 0 44 27.3 1.5 2.3 1.5 .0 11.0Wayman TisdalePF4 0 108 16 9 1 0 51 27.0 4.0 2.3 .3 .0 12.8Clint RichardsonSG4 0 73 10 8 0 0 16 18.3 2.5 2.0 .0 .0 4.0Kyle MacyPG4 0 49 3 5 1 0 4 12.3 .8 1.3 .3 .0 1.0Ron Anderson basketball, born 1958SF4 0 24 3 0 0 0 4 6.0 .8 .0 .0 .0 1.0Stuart Gray basketballC 3 0 14 7 0 0 0 2 4.7 2.3 .0 .0 .0 .7 Awards and records Chuck Person, NBA Rookie of the Year Award Chuck Person, NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team Transactions April 2026 References See also 1986-87 NBA season Category:Indiana Pacers seasons Indiana Indiana Indiana