The Indiana Pacers are an impressive 4-0 under interim coach Frank Vogel, with wins coming against Portland and three sub-.500 clubs (Cleveland, New Jersey and Toronto).

The stretch has given the Pacers a one-game lead over the Bobcats for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference despite an overall record of 21-27.

Under Vogel, Indiana has done a few things that they weren’t able to under Jim O’Brien – they have withstood late runs, used balanced attacks and played as a unit for 48 minutes.

Both Ends Of The Floor

They have been stronger defensively all season long and have maintained that improvement under the first-time head coach. In their last four games, opponents have shot 37.5% from the field and 31.7% from three.

Their competition hasn’t been very difficult, but they’ll face a significant litmus test on Tuesday night against Miami.

More importantly, Indiana has been better offensively under Vogel. They have more room just below the three-point line with center Roy Hibbert moved closer to the basket on most plays and their shooting percentages have benefited.

The Pacers have hit 45.4% of their field goals during their winning streak, the longest such streak of the season. Overall, they are shooting just 43.8% from the field this season. They rely heavily on the three-pointer (fourth in average attempts) and have been hotter from deep as well (up to 40% from 36.3% overall).

Their defense has been stout thanks to strong defensive rebounding and they’ve increased their offensive opportunities due to crashing the glass. They have an average rebounding differential of +14.5 under Vogel, although none of their four opponents currently rank in the top-twelve in rebounding.

Mr. Hibbert

Hibbert hasn’t been blowing minds with O’Brien, one of his biggest critics, gone, but he has shown signs of promise.

He had his best game since November on Jan. 31 against Toronto when he posted 24 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks on 9-for-19 shooting in 30 minutes. It marked the most shot attempts he had since Indiana’s Dec. 19 loss in Boston.

The Pacers are hoping that January was rock bottom for Hibbert, when he averaged 9.5 points and 7.0 rebounds on 38.8% shooting in 15 games. During Indiana’s win streak, Hibbert has totaled 15.8 points and 7.5 boards on 45.5% shooting.

He has averaged close to 14 attempts per game under Vogel, who has already made an effort to spend time with the center as a way of reassuring him that he’s a vocal point of the team’s plans. Last month, he averaged fewer than nine attempts per game (that included his 19-shot affair in Vogel’s debut).

While he has looked better, forgive me for expecting more given the opposition Hibbert has faced. Andrea Bargnani, J.J. Hickson and Brook Lopez haven’t exactly been revelations on the defensive end this season.

Role Reversal

Vogel has asked Indiana’s point guards to control things more on the offensive end and Darren Collison will ultimately be the largest beneficiary. He is averaging six assists per night with increased ball-handling responsibility, up from five under O’Brien.

With the ball in his hands more, Collison has been more efficient with his own offense. He’s shooting 58.5% from the field, including 6-for-11 from three-point land. There has been an adjustment, though. He has 15 turnovers during the four-game surge.

Danny Granger has had the ball less with Collison handling it more, which has (and will continue to be) an adjustment. He’s scoring just 17.5 points on 35.1% shooting, but his rebounding (6.5) and assist (3.5) numbers have spiked.

Since his coming out party in 2009, the Pacers have been looking for another star to play alongside Granger. That player still isn’t on the roster, but asking for less out of their best player will improve his efficiency over the long run.

He is shooting a career-low 42.2% from the field this season on 16.7 attempts. He hasn’t surpassed that mark in six straight games. If that trend continues, we should see his shooting percentages improve as well.

The Pacers need Granger to be their offensive leader, but I think under Vogel we’ll see a tighter distribution of shots than we did under O’Brien.

We haven’t seen Brandon Rush play since the coaching change, but most nights it appears as though Collison and Hibbert will serve as alternating deputies under Granger.

Please Withhold Judgment

Those of you that are anointing Frank Vogel as the next great Pacers coach, please take a deep breath. He’ll have the season to state his case as a long-term option, but I don’t think he has much of a chance at keeping the job.

Some pretty good size names have been linked to the Pacers and the coaching job could become extremely attractive if some control over personnel is awarded should Larry Bird and/or David Morway not return.

We’ll have to wait until at least March 1 to see whether or not Vogel has this team pointed towards the playoffs.

In their next 11 games the Pacers will face a title contender in Miami (twice), teams they have to beat (Minnesota and Washington), two Western clubs (Utah and Phoenix), competitors for the final few postseason spots in the East (Charlotte, Milwaukee and Detroit) and a team in a similar position (Golden State).

It’ll be those games, more so than the first four we’ve seen, that will determine if the Pacers are really better under Vogel or just enjoying the arbitrary shot-in-the-arm that often comes along with an in-season coaching change.