BOSTON — Jeff Green scored 13 of his 19 points in the second quarter, and the Boston Celtics coasted to a 92-80 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night and moved back into a first-place tie in the Eastern Conference.

The victory left the Celtics and Chicago Bulls (48-18) with the same record in the race for home-court advantage through the conference finals. Boston had lost three of four to fall out of the top spot.

Josh McRoberts had 14 points and 11 rebounds for Indiana. Tyler Hansbrough, who had back-to-back career highs in a pair of victories against the New York Knicks this week, was 4-for-14, scoring 10 and grabbing 11 rebounds.

In other games: Nene scored 20 points, J.R. Smith added all of his 15 in the fourth quarter, and Denver ran away to another win, beating Atlanta 102-87. It looked as if the game would go down to the wire when Zaza Pachulia flipped in a putback, pulling the Hawks to 72-69 with just over 10 minutes remaining. But Denver dominated the rest of the way, outscoring the home team 30-18. …

Richard Hamilton scored 24 points, Greg Monroe added 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Detroit ended a three-game losing streak with a 107-93 victory over Toronto. The Raptors scored the game’s first basket, but never led again. Tayshaun Prince added 22 points for the Pistons. Andrea Bargnani led Toronto with 20 points. …

Chris Paul had 26 points and nine assists, and New Orleans extended the Phoenix Suns’ losing streak to four games, 100-95. Emeka Okafor had 16 points and 11 rebounds for New Orleans. David West added 16 points, including an 18-foot jumper to give the Hornets a 95-88 lead with 29.5 seconds to go. The Hornets led by as many as 19 in the third quarter but had to hold on against a Suns squad that made 14 3-pointers. Phoenix was as close as 93-88 when Grant Hill rolled in a 14-footer with 3 minutes left, but New Orleans did not allow another basket until 21 seconds remained, when Jared Dudley, who had 25 points, hit his fifth 3. …

Dwight Howard had 31 points and 22 rebounds to lead Orlando to a 93-89 overtime win at Milwaukee. Hedo Turkoglu scored eight of his 19 points in overtime for Orlando. Milwaukee was missing center Andrew Bogut due to a migraine headache. …

Kevin Durant scored 29 points, Russell Westbrook added 18 and Oklahoma City frustrated Miami’s offense all night on the way to a 96-85 win. Chris Bosh had 21 points and 11 rebounds, Dwyane Wade scored 21 points and LeBron James finished with 19 for the Heat, who had won three straight. …

Kevin Martin scored 21 points, Chuck Hayes matched his season high with 17 rebounds and Houston never trailed in a 94-78 win over Charlotte. D.J. Augustin scored 22 and Boris Diaw 13 for the Bobcats. …

C.J. Miles scored a career-high 40 points and cemented his new starting role as Utah cruised to a 119-104 victory over Minnesota, giving Ty Corbin his first back-to-back wins as coach.

Note: The Sacramento Kings have taken yet another step toward a potential move to Southern California. A Sacramento attorney representing the team’s owners filed for at least four federal trademark registrations this month as they explore a move to Anaheim. Among the names filed for according to the United States Patent and Trademark Office’s website were: Anaheim Royals, Anaheim Royals of Southern California, Orange County Royals and Los Angeles Royals. The franchise was called the Royals in Rochester and Cincinnati.

Read More: Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat

The Indiana Pacers took a valiant last stand for team-oriented, family-friendly basketball, but came up short against the superstar Miami Heat, 110-103. The Pacers had 11 players score three or more points — the Heat had just six. Of course, when Dwyane Wade erupts for 41 points and 12 rebounds and LeBron James and Chris Bosh combine for 49, you don’t need a whole lot of supplemental scoring.

Indiana gave the Heat a better game than should’ve been expected, especially after Miami ran out to a huge first quarter lead. The Pacers’ playoff push officially has legs.

Four Pacers hit double figures on the night.

In a way, Miami needed this win even more than Indy did. Any wins they can grab over teams beside the Boston Celtics will be needed if they want to force Boston to play the toughest NBA Playoffs road possible.

For more on this game join Peninsula Is Mightier and Indy Cornrows.

Read More: Chris Bosh (F – MIA), LeBron James (F – MIA), Dwyane Wade (G – MIA), Frank Vogel (A – IND), Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, Indiana Pacers at Miami Heat, Feb 8, 2011 7:30 PM EST

LeBron James scored 41 points and added 13 rebounds and eight assists as the Miami Heat held off the improved Indiana Pacers 117-112 in South Beach on Tuesday night. Chris Bosh added 19, and Dwyane Wade had 17 points and seven assists.

The Pacers had won four straight since Frank Vogel took over as (interim) head coach, but the Heat — who Indiana had beaten early this season — proved to be too much late. The Pacers led from the early second quarter all the way until past the halfway point in the fourth. But LeBron and Bosh, each with seven in the fourth, were too much as Indiana’s offense struggled to bring the game home.

Indiana shot an effective field goal percentage of .625 in the first three quarters, but just .278 in the fourth. The Pacers had hit seven of 17 three-point attempts through three, but zero of five in the fourth. Roy Hibbert, Indiana’s top scorer in this game, had 19 points in the first three quarters, abusing Miami’s center cadre. But he scored just one point on Erick Dampier in the fourth. Danny Granger had 17 entering the fourth, 11 of which had come in the third against LeBron. But he was held to one bucket in the fourth.

Tyler Hansbrough went a perfect 6-6 in the second quarter to rack up 13 points, but in the fourth, Vogel yanked him in favor of starting power forward Josh McRoberts. Indiana’s other starters (excluding Mike Dunleavy) came in at that point … but so did LeBron. The game immediately turned in favor of the Heat.

Miami has now won seven straight. The Heat are half of a game behind the Boston Celtics for No. 1 in the East.

Also, LeBron is a terrible teammate who dunks on his co-star’s head. (Check out Wade clutching his face.)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they’ll keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh.

He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation — no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future. He said Bird’s desire to remain in the role will carry significant weight.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as center Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the offseason to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season.

“Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

Bird said he doesn’t know which way Simon is leaning.

“When I talked to Mr. Simon, he had some concerns about some things,” Bird said. “I told him I wanted to wait until after the year is up and sit down and talk about it and see where he wants to go. But I know if I’m not here, whoever’s here, they’re sitting in position to turn this thing around.”

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they’ll keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon said Tuesday he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh. He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation – no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future. He said Bird’s desire to remain in the role will carry significant weight.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as center Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the offseason to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season. “Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they will keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh. He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation — no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as center Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the offseason to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season.

“Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

Bird said he doesn’t know which way Simon is leaning.

“When I talked to Mr. Simon, he had some concerns about some things,” Bird said. “I told him I wanted to wait until after the year is up and sit down and talk about it and see where he wants to go. But I know if I’m not here, whoever’s here, they’re sitting in position to turn this thing around.”
 

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they’ll keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh. He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation – no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future. He said Bird’s desire to remain in the role will carry significant weight.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as center Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the offseason to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season.

“Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

Bird said he doesn’t know which way Simon is leaning.

“When I talked to Mr. Simon, he had some concerns about some things,” Bird said. “I told him I wanted to wait until after the year is up and sit down and talk about it and see where he wants to go. But I know if I’m not here, whoever’s here, they’re sitting in position to turn this thing around.”

Copyright 2011 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they’ll keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon told the Associated Press on Tuesday that he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh. He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation — no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future. He said Bird’s desire to remain in the role will carry significant weight.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as center Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the offseason to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season.

“Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

Bird said he doesn’t know which way Simon is leaning.

“When I talked to Mr. Simon, he had some concerns about some things,” Bird said. “I told him I wanted to wait until after the year is up and sit down and talk about it and see where he wants to go. But I know if I’m not here, whoever’s here, they’re sitting in position to turn this thing around.”

The Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons under Larry Bird’s watch. (Patrick Lin/AFP/Getty Images)

The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they’ll keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh. He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation — no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future. He said Bird’s desire to remain in the role will carry significant weight.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as centre Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the off-season to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season.

“Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

Bird said he doesn’t know which way Simon is leaning.

“When I talked to Mr. Simon, he had some concerns about some things,” Bird said. “I told him I wanted to wait until after the year is up and sit down and talk about it and see where he wants to go. But I know if I’m not here, whoever’s here, they’re sitting in position to turn this thing around.”

Updated Feb 1, 2011 3:14 PM ET

INDIANAPOLIS (AP)

The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they’ll keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh. He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation — no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future. He said Bird’s desire to remain in the role will carry significant weight.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as center Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the offseason to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season.

“Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

Bird said he doesn’t know which way Simon is leaning.

“When I talked to Mr. Simon, he had some concerns about some things,” Bird said. “I told him I wanted to wait until after the year is up and sit down and talk about it and see where he wants to go. But I know if I’m not here, whoever’s here, they’re sitting in position to turn this thing around.”

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – The Indiana Pacers have replaced their coach, but they’ll keep team president Larry Bird at least through the season.

Owner Herb Simon told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he believes Bird has performed well under difficult circumstances, and he could be back next year. On Sunday, the Pacers fired coach Jim O’Brien and replaced him with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“I still have an incredible amount of confidence in Larry and his basketball acumen, his winning tradition,” Simon said. “The way he deals with the basketball side is the way I believe it should be done. I’m very satisfied.”

Some fans have grown restless because the Pacers have missed the playoffs for four straight seasons. Many have been critical of Bird, an Indiana native and former Boston Celtics star.

Bird took full control of basketball decisions after the 2007-08 season, when former CEO Donnie Walsh left to become the New York Knicks’ president. The Pacers went 36-46 in 2008-09 and 32-50 in 2009-10. The Pacers have an 18-27 record this season, 17 games behind the Eastern Conference-leading Celtics.

Bird was hired as team president in 2003 and shared in basketball decisions with Walsh. He arrived before the infamous brawl between Pacers players and Pistons fans in 2004. Later, several players had problems with the law, and the team decided to make talent-depleting trades.

“Even though he’s had some tough years, there’s a lot of reasons that we can explore, why we’ve had such a tough time,” Simon said. “He was left a very difficult situation – no cap room, big contracts, a lot of problems he had no control over.”

This is the final year of Bird’s contract. Simon says he and Bird will meet after the season to discuss the future. He said Bird’s desire to remain in the role will carry significant weight.

“He’s going to evaluate where he is in life, and we will listen and wait for him to tell us what he thinks we should be doing,” Simon said. “Ultimately, I’d like to get his recommendation of what he wants to do. If it’s something I’m comfortable with, I’ll do it.”

The Pacers are building around veteran forward Danny Granger and young talents such as center Roy Hibbert, forward Tyler Hansbrough and guard Darren Collison. Bird traded for Collison in the offseason to give the team the point guard it needed, and the Pacers will have salary cap space to get other pieces before next season.

Simon said Bird deserves credit for giving the Pacers a chance to be competitive in the coming years.

“If you look at our roster, you look at our players, you look at the cap room we have, the whole picture, he’s done exactly what he said he would do, and he’s put us now in a pretty good situation for the future. It’s a very, very good job he’s done.”

Simon said he expects Bird to be a Pacer in some capacity next season.

“Larry is someone the franchise will always want to be associated with in some way,” he said. “Larry’s a very independent person, and we’ll await his decision. I think he wants to be involved with the franchise.”

Bird said he doesn’t know which way Simon is leaning.

“When I talked to Mr. Simon, he had some concerns about some things,” Bird said. “I told him I wanted to wait until after the year is up and sit down and talk about it and see where he wants to go. But I know if I’m not here, whoever’s here, they’re sitting in position to turn this thing around.”

The Indiana Pacers fired Jim O’Brien, who was in his fourth year as head coach of the National Basketball Association team, and replaced him for the remainder of the season with assistant coach Frank Vogel.

“Frank will do a great job of handling our young players and hopefully we can see what they’ve got,” Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird said in a news conference today. “He’s going to change some things.”

The Pacers had a 121-169 record under O’Brien, who previously coached the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers. O’Brien joined the Pacers in May 2007 after a two-year break from the NBA.

The Pacers never had a winning season under O’Brien and are 10th in the 15-team Eastern Conference with a 17-27 record this season. Indiana lost 110-89 to the Chicago Bulls yesterday for its seventh loss in eight games.

O’Brien “did a lot for us,” Bird said. “Not only did he coach the team, but helped change the culture and move us in the right direction. He’s going to be missed but we move on.”

Bird said he expects candidates to replace O’Brien to get in touch with the Pacers.

“Usually when this stuff happens people start calling,” Bird said. “But obviously Frank’s going to be there for the rest of the year and we’ll see how it goes. If he does a good job he’ll be our first interview.”

The 37-year-old Vogel is moving into the head coach’s chair for the first time after spending eight of his 14 years in the NBA as an assistant. He said to have a chance of losing his interim tag the Pacers have to reach the postseason.

“We’ve got to make the playoffs and we’ve got to be competitive in the playoffs,” he said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Dex McLuskey in Dallas at [email protected]

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Michael Sillup at [email protected]

INDIANAPOLIS — The Boston Celtics played like a championship-caliber team for the final 12 minutes on Tuesday, and that was enough against the up-and-coming Indiana Pacers.

Indiana led for all but a few minutes in the first three quarters, but Boston outscored the Pacers 29-16 in the fourth while holding them to 26 percent shooting for a 95-83 victory.

“We just kept playing defense,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. “Then all of a sudden, our shots started falling and our defense stayed.”

Paul Pierce scored 21 points, Ray Allen added 17 and Kevin Garnett had 11 points and 13 rebounds.

Boston point guard Rajon Rondo missed his fifth straight game with a sprained left ankle. The Celtics improved to 4-1 without him and maintained the best record in the Eastern Conference. They were coming off an 86-78 loss at Orlando on Christmas that ended a 14-game winning streak.

“You always want to get back on track, especially after a tough loss,” Pierce said. “All of these road games are tough, no matter who you’re playing because teams are comfortable in their home environment.”

Glen Davis scored 14 points and former Pacer Marquis Daniels added 12 for the Celtics. They combined for eight points and two assists during the 13-2 run to start the fourth quarter that put the Celtics in control for good.

Daniels entered the game with his Celtics trailing 60-53 in the third quarter. The 6-foot-6 guard used his height advantage against Indiana’s 6-footers Darren Collison and T.J. Ford.

“The game turned around when they went to a big one guard and were able to post up T.J. and Darren,” said Pacers coach Jim O’Brien. “That slowed the tempo and got them back in the game.”

Allen, who scored 10 points in the fourth quarter, was impressed with Daniels.

“He did a great job tonight, not only offensively, but guarding their point guards,” Allen said. “He was able to keep us under control, and he did a great job in the fourth quarter.”

Brandon Rush led the Pacers with 17 points. Danny Granger scored 15 points, but he shot 5 for 21 from the field.

“We just crowded him,” Rivers said. “He just missed some good shots, too. He’s just a tough cover. You really want to just fight him off his spot and make him take tough shots.”

The Pacers had gotten off to a promising start this season, but have now lost consecutive home games to Memphis and Boston. Indiana had already beaten the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami this season, but the poor shooting at the end prevented the Pacers from notching another big-time win.

“When you lead good teams like we did tonight and you let them make a run at you, you’re not going to be able to hang in there with them,” Granger said.

Indiana led 34-25 in the second quarter before Pierce scored 10 points in two minutes to cut Indiana’s lead to 39-35.

“That’s just Paul,” Rivers said. “He’s a professional scorer. He doesn’t look quick, he doesn’t look athletic – he is. But he just scores at his pace, and when he gets it going, the floodgates open.”