Indiana Pacers Links: What Others Are Saying
Not a busy week for the Indiana Pacers, other than that whole trip across the seas to the Phillipines and Taiwan to bring the game of basketball to those areas. It’s some great exposure for the NBA, and the Indiana Pacers. I think it’s saying something about the quality of the team we have here that they got invited to do something like this. Do you believe just a few seasons ago, the Pacers are making this type of trip to be global ambassadors? The game in the Phillipines was the first preseason game there ever. Hopefully, the team made some new fans even in the poor outing.
That looks to be the word around here as the Pacers have played two preseason games, and haven’t really clicked yet. I’ve wrote up before, and I’ll say it again, this team will probably take a few weeks to get going. That’s not a bad thing as long as the end result is a top seed in the Eastern Confere, and a trip to the Conference Finals is in order. It’s all about how this team finishes up the season. Sure, if things are looking bad, we’ll have to address those things. But right now, I’m looking at this is preseason, let’s give the new pieces some time to mix themselves in. Let’s have the team sort out that issue of who starts, Danny Granger or Lance Stephenson. A few more weeks, and we’ll be talking about the regular season anyways, so to me, right now, is not a concern. Right now, I wanted to look at what other sites are saying about the Blue and Gold.
2013-2014 Outlook: Indiana Pacers
ESPN always does a great job with their five questions for five people. It’s something I like to do my own take on, and I should have up my own answers for the five questions, later today. But right now, you can see what five writers are saying about the team. Looking at a trip to the Conference Finals seems to be where most of the people think the Pacers will end up. One question that caught my eye was the bold prediction. I will definitely open some eyes when I make my own bold prediction about this team, and where I think they’ll end up going.
Indiana Pacers Do Not Need Danny Granger To Be An All-Star This Year
I usually enjoy some of the articles on Rant Sports, and this one is a good take on Danny Granger. You can say that Granger just needs to find his role for the team as it’s going to be different in year’s past. He was that guy that was the primary scorer, and had to carry this team through some bad years. But now with all the talent here in Indiana, he can be one of the other scoring options. He could even come off the bench and support that squad. This is also why I wish the Pacers would make some decision on who starts, so we can actually look at how each unit will do. I don’t think that answer comes till October 28th, the night before the first game, even if it happens that. There could still be some flip flopping if Lance Stephenson starts out the season as that starter, and once Granger feels comfortable, he jumps into there. But ultimately, I think whoever you end up choosing as that starter should be the choice for the WHOLE season.
Last of a Dying Breed: Where Joakim Noah Ranks Among the Top 10 Centers in the NBA
You’ll look at this title, and think why did I choose this one to insert as a link to visit. Well, our good friend, Roy Hibbert, makes an appearance on this list of top centers. In the 8th spot. Out of the top 10, which is awesome. But it’s not awesome, considering he’s in that lower half. I know his offense game was down at times last season, but this is a guy that was an All Star two seasons ago, and last season picked up his game immensely in that post season. Isn’t that where guys are judged even more? Just ask Reggie Miller about that, who’s probably more known for his playoff career than his regular season career. With both sessions being up there in terms of all time greats. To say that Roy Hibbert is behind guys like Al Jefferson and Tyson Chandler is not paying attention in my mind. I would say that Hibbert is at least top 5 and probably in the Eastern Conference, one of the best. This center position is just what Hibbert plays, close to the rim, defending there, and making life hard for guys coming down the lane. Isn’t that what the “old school” centers did? I do believe that this is the position that will probably change the most as it has already, and in a few years, it won’t even look like what we remember a “center” position being. But right now, how this author could overlook Hibbert is beyond me?