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Opinion: Where Do The Indiana Pacers Go From Here? |
By Bill Potter – Writer Follow , and Like SB Nation Indiana on Facebook.
Mar 7, 2011 - The bloom is off the rose for the Indiana Pacers. Â After a strong start under interim head coach Frank Vogel, the Pacers have slid back into a morass of infighting, leaving one to wonder what is next for the team in the closing month of the NBA season. To be fair, the Pacers made the switch from Jim O’Brien to Vogel at the perfect time in the schedule; the Blue and Gold played teams with a winning record just three times in their first 12 under Vogel, going an expected 9-3 and raising expectations that Indiana might be able to climb beyond the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. However, when the rubber hit the road, and Indiana began facing successful franchises, the team’s lack of cohesiveness began to show. Â Six straight games against Western Conference teams resulted in five losses; the only win came against sub-.500 Golden State. Â Not only did the Pacers fail to play defense in any other of their three games in Oklahoma City, Dallas and Houston, they demonstrated a clear lack of leadership by the end of the trip, with the veterans clearly frustrated by the lack of adjustment by younger players. Â The result was Jeff Foster – frustrated himself – holding back Dahntay Jones as Jones ripped into the team during a brief stoppage. Â Locker room words followed, revealing the glaring hole – a lack of accountability and leadership from the team’s top players. Danny Granger was essentially benched during his stint with USA Basketball because of a lack of defense; at times, the veteran has displayed a willingness to defend, but not consistently enough that when he says the team needs to play better defense, that anyone truly listens. Darren Collison has the ability to play defense, coming from a defensive-oriented system at UCLA; however, he seems lost at times on that end of the court. Â In just his second year, Collison’s defense should improve, but he does not play it well enough now to command a similar effort out of others. Roy Hibbert’s play has been up and down throughout the year, and while the 7-footer shows a commitment to improve, he is still inconsistent on the defensive end, as seen in the Utah game where veterans Al Jefferson and Paul Milsap had a field day. Â The fact of the matter is that the leaders the Pacers might have do not play (or play well enough) to command the attention of those who make up the core of the team. Â While Jones and Foster are solid veterans, their voices are not going to make Granger or Brandon Rush decide to play better defense. Â And while fans have been waiting for Granger to develop into an all-around talent, complete with defensive stopping abilities, maybe it’s time to wonder if this is who Granger is: a talented scorer, who can play occasional defense when he wants. Â In short, a poor man’s Paul Pierce (and that’s if everything goes right). The leadership void seems like it should be Collison or Hibbert’s to fill. Â With one in his second year and another in his third, though, it may take another year for that. Â Whether that costs the Pacers what should be a spot in the playoffs remains to be seen. Â Â Follow , and Like SB Nation Indiana on Facebook. Do you like this story?Bill PotterWriter Born and raised in Indianapolis, Bill Potter grew up believing that the racing world centered around 16th and Georgetown. He attended his first Indianapolis 500 in 1993, promptly booed Emerson… Read full bio SB Nation Profile Other features by Bill Potter
That’s all for today guys, i’ll be back to blog you tomorrow. Posted in nba, Uncategorized | Comments Off
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Opinion: Where Do The Indiana Pacers Go From Here? |
By Bill Potter – Writer Follow , and Like SB Nation Indiana on Facebook.
Mar 7, 2011 - The bloom is off the rose for the Indiana Pacers. Â After a strong start under interim head coach Frank Vogel, the Pacers have slid back into a morass of infighting, leaving one to wonder what is next for the team in the closing month of the NBA season. To be fair, the Pacers made the switch from Jim O’Brien to Vogel at the perfect time in the schedule; the Blue and Gold played teams with a winning record just three times in their first 12 under Vogel, going an expected 9-3 and raising expectations that Indiana might be able to climb beyond the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. However, when the rubber hit the road, and Indiana began facing successful franchises, the team’s lack of cohesiveness began to show. Â Six straight games against Western Conference teams resulted in five losses; the only win came against sub-.500 Golden State. Â Not only did the Pacers fail to play defense in any other of their three games in Oklahoma City, Dallas and Houston, they demonstrated a clear lack of leadership by the end of the trip, with the veterans clearly frustrated by the lack of adjustment by younger players. Â The result was Jeff Foster – frustrated himself – holding back Dahntay Jones as Jones ripped into the team during a brief stoppage. Â Locker room words followed, revealing the glaring hole – a lack of accountability and leadership from the team’s top players. Danny Granger was essentially benched during his stint with USA Basketball because of a lack of defense; at times, the veteran has displayed a willingness to defend, but not consistently enough that when he says the team needs to play better defense, that anyone truly listens. Darren Collison has the ability to play defense, coming from a defensive-oriented system at UCLA; however, he seems lost at times on that end of the court. Â In just his second year, Collison’s defense should improve, but he does not play it well enough now to command a similar effort out of others. Roy Hibbert’s play has been up and down throughout the year, and while the 7-footer shows a commitment to improve, he is still inconsistent on the defensive end, as seen in the Utah game where veterans Al Jefferson and Paul Milsap had a field day. Â The fact of the matter is that the leaders the Pacers might have do not play (or play well enough) to command the attention of those who make up the core of the team. Â While Jones and Foster are solid veterans, their voices are not going to make Granger or Brandon Rush decide to play better defense. Â And while fans have been waiting for Granger to develop into an all-around talent, complete with defensive stopping abilities, maybe it’s time to wonder if this is who Granger is: a talented scorer, who can play occasional defense when he wants. Â In short, a poor man’s Paul Pierce (and that’s if everything goes right). The leadership void seems like it should be Collison or Hibbert’s to fill. Â With one in his second year and another in his third, though, it may take another year for that. Â Whether that costs the Pacers what should be a spot in the playoffs remains to be seen. Â Â Follow , and Like SB Nation Indiana on Facebook. Do you like this story?Bill PotterWriter Born and raised in Indianapolis, Bill Potter grew up believing that the racing world centered around 16th and Georgetown. He attended his first Indianapolis 500 in 1993, promptly booed Emerson… Read full bio SB Nation Profile Other features by Bill Potter
Gotta run!. |
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Cold-shooting Pacers fall to Jazz |
Advertisement You will be redirected to the page you want to view in  seconds. ADVERTISEMENT Top Stories ADVERTISEMENT Archives View the last seven days See our paid archives for news older than a week. On The Air Find what sports are on local TV, radio Get IndyStar on the Go with our iphone apps Use our mobile sites and iPhone apps to keep updated with what’s going on around Central Indiana. FOLLOW THE INDY PREPS ACTION Scores, stats, rankings and more for area high schools. Celebrity News From USA TODAY and Associated Press ADVERTISEMENT Leave your comments on the news below. Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off
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Team blows opportunity to add draft-lottery talent at bargain price |
Advertisement You will be redirected to the page you want to view in  seconds. ADVERTISEMENT Top Stories ADVERTISEMENT Archives View the last seven days See our paid archives for news older than a week. On The Air Find what sports are on local TV, radio Get IndyStar on the Go with our iphone apps Use our mobile sites and iPhone apps to keep updated with what’s going on around Central Indiana. FOLLOW THE INDY PREPS ACTION Scores, stats, rankings and more for area high schools. Celebrity News From USA TODAY and Associated Press ADVERTISEMENT If anybody needs tickets to games, remember to click the tickets link at the top. Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off
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Ah, 2004, when Pacers eliminated Heat |
Advertisement You will be redirected to the page you want to view in  seconds. ADVERTISEMENT Top Stories ADVERTISEMENT Archives View the last seven days See our paid archives for news older than a week. On The Air Find what sports are on local TV, radio Get IndyStar on the Go with our iphone apps Use our mobile sites and iPhone apps to keep updated with what’s going on around Central Indiana. FOLLOW THE INDY PREPS ACTION Scores, stats, rankings and more for area high schools. Celebrity News From USA TODAY and Associated Press ADVERTISEMENT What do you guys think about this. Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off
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