SB Nation - Luther Head

IC Cold Links: Reserves Lead Pacers To Another Victory With Big Second, Fourth Quarters

spstevenson — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 15:20:05 -0000

Brandon Rush attacks the basket during the Pacers thrilla-in-Washington win Saturday evening.

The Indiana Pacers bench players are crushing teams. They are on a seven-game winning streak and should be heading toward a spot in April's NBA playoffs.

But, after toppling the Wizards with a 49-29 advantage off the bench, the Pacers are still only 8-13 after escaping out of Washington with a nail-biting finish for the blue and gold's second straight win. While the bench attempts to the lead the team to victories, the starters pulls the team in the other direction. The bench continues to outplay the starters. As Mike Wells wrote in his notebook today, the second unit scored 49 points, 17 assists and nine rebounds against the Wiz. In the past three games, the bench consisting of Mike Dunleavy, Tyler Hansbrough, Luther Head, Earl Watson and Jeff Foster have combined for 136 points, 55 rebounds and 34 assists, and have outscored its past seven bench opponents, 293-196.

There are four prominent reasons that the starters continue to get outplayed by the team's bench guys: 1) The starters are playing the opposing team's starters, a definite disadvantage for a starting unit playing without its all-star Danny Granger; 2) T.J. Ford is still starting, a definite disadvantage for any unit that the point guard inhabits, at least until he finally lives up to his billing as a leader and provides some much-needed stability at his roster spot. Until then, he continues to disappoint (including another team-high -13 in the +/- stat department last night which bumps his season total to another team high, -123);

3) The starters are on the bench in the fourth quarter. Last night, Hansbrough, Dunleavy (the free-throw savior with 0.1 seconds remaining) and Watson were killers in the final minutes; and 4) There's this thing called defense and the starters aren't playing it. The starting unit gave up 76 points in the first and third quarters combined. The Pacers gave up less in the second and fourth quarters combined (37 points) than the team did in just one of the other two periods. Obviously, these quarters are played with a mix of both units, but the tone of the quarter is set in the first few minutes and can be maintained for the remaining minutes of the stazna. The bench is setting a good tone in their quarters.

Coach Jim O'Brien on his team's spirited bench play: "I think that they know they are important and we have confidence in them to succeed. Generally you're playing against the other team's bench and I think they're hungry. Earl has done a good job."

The starters, and bench, will have a big challenge come Monday when the team visits the Magic. Watson moved from the bench unit to the starting point guard spot at the start of the second half during Saturday's win. It will be interesting to see if Watson's move is permanent and whether any other changes will occur before Monday's game. Check out the jump for more links.

Box Score
Photo Gallery
AP Story
NBA.com Recap
The Inside the Game report from Pacers.com gives us some good quotables from after last night's crazy finish. Here's coach Jim O'Brien: "It was one for the ages. A great win for us to be able to get that and scratch out everything we did at the end ... I'm real proud of our guys. To scratch out a back-to-back on the road says a lot about the toughness our guys are starting to develop. We feel very lucky to get out of here with a W."
Mike Wells writes about Dunleavy's dedication in the gym during his rehabilitation which helped lead him to casually dropping the two game-winning free throws. Dunleavy told Wells, "Forget thinking about it in the driveway as a kid, I was thinking about that scenario lying in the hospital bed. It's all you think about, being able to have a chance to win it at the end." Wells also noted that Dunleavy played three minutes past his 24-minute restriction. O'Brien said there was "no way" he would take Dunleavy out of the game in the final two minutes because of the limit. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it you medical bastards.
In his Pacers Insider post, Wells talks more about Dunleavy, some tidbits on Ford's amazing performance (including a 1-of-9 fourth-quarter shooting display), and more on Troy Murphy's change in his offensive approach.
Wells also reported in his notebook that Dahntay Jones, who left the game midway through the fourth quarter, reported that he had a sore hip and shoulder after the game. Jones said he was "sore, but I'll be fine."
Always Miller Time gives a take on the fun win for Pacers fans.
Wizards fans apparently didn't find the last call to be...well, fair. The Washington Examiner decided that it was a call that would "be debated until the end of eternity". Nothing like a flair for the dramatic. The Washington Post puts the blame more squarely on the Wizards for blowing their lead in their final two minutes. Also, a recap from the Washington Times.
Sports Illustrated's Ian Thomsen has an interesting read about his recent discussions with the commish, David Stern, about the future of the league including a more lenient zone defense, legalized gambling on the NBA and the potential lockout.

Pacers 86, Clippers 73: Better Late Than Never, Pacers Run Past Clippers In Fourth Quarter

Tom Lewis — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 03:59:28 -0000

More photos » by Michael Conroy - AP

All's well that ends well, like this dunk by Dahntay Jones.

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The Indiana Pacers were only half good again tonight, but this time they saved their best for last to beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 86-73.

After clunking and clanking their way to a 34-point first half, the Pacers used the third quarter to work their way back into the game and then just exploded for 31 points in the deciding fourth to cruise by the Clippers.

There were a lot of moving parts that had to come together to eventually create the winning combination. Leading scorer, Danny Granger was a late scratch and remains day-to-day after an MRI revealed the Pacers resident all-star has a sprained MCL in his left knee. But Granger's absence was no excuse for the ugly first half that saw both teams shoot in the low 30% from the floor.

In fact, the Pacers only scored 34-points in the first half, ironically matching the pitiful second-half point total in the last two home losses to the Knicks and Cavaliers. Fortunately the Clippers weren't much better and the Pacers only trailed by nine at the break. The game continued to creep along in the third quarter, but the Pacers cut the lead to four heading into the fourth.

At winning time, though, the Pacers answered big time, winning the fourth 31-14 in a game that became quite intense and a little chippy. At one point Baron Davis and T.J. Ford had a silly squabble of wills with neither wanting to flinch, but it added some juice to the game and although it woke up Baron Davis at the offensive end, it also engaged Ford at both ends as he included his teammates who put forth a great team effort to close out the game. I'm convinced Davis was initially upset because Ford was actually giving him some fits with his defense.

Ford was just one of several players who wiped away a poor early effort to finish strong and find a way to win. Whether it was foul trouble or poor shooting, nearly every Pacers was struggling. But they used a strong defensive effort to stay in touch until the offense came around. In fact, the defense created some easy offensive chances. For instance, Roy Hibbert rotated over to block a Craig Smith layup early in the fourth. The block slammed off the backboard, fueling a layup by Ford at the other end and pushing the lead to four points. The Pacers would never trail again.

More on the major contributions after the jump.

Dahntay Jones was a monster in the fourth quarter and his game highlights how this one went from start to finish. Dahntay had zero points and three fouls in the first half. He forced a couple of shots but just couldn't make a jumper to save his life. He even missed a couple of free throws. But he kept grinding in the second half and drew a couple of fouls on drives to the rim. The made free throws helped his rhythm and before long he was scoring from all over the court, finishing with 18 points in the second half. He even knocked down a classic Quisy three where you beg him not to shoot and then watch the ball go in. Jones also helped slow down Baron Davis after the T.J tango re-engaged the Clippers' point guard.
Luther Head was one player who deserves credit for playing well in both the first and second half. For a three minute stretch early in the second quarter, Luther scored eight straight points which kept the Pacers in the game. He also had a couple of assists later in the quarter including a sweet leave for Roy Hibbert as he rolled to the hoop for an easy bucket. In the second half, Luther continued his solid play with six more points to finish with 14. At one point, I thought JOB was going to ride Luther home, but eventually the foul-strapped Brandon Rush returned to the court.
Troy Murphy also weathered three fouls in the first half while not shooting it particularly well. He did play much better defense, though and rebounded pretty well, although Marcus Camby was a nightmare for everyone. In fact, after Camby closed the third with a 3-pointer (seriously) he had 15 points and 20 rebounds. But in the fourth, Camby could only muster up one rebound and zero points. Meanwhile, Murph continued to scrap on the glass, even keeping a couple of possessions alive on the offensive glass, and then found his stroke when it mattered most. Murph's two three pointers in the last five minutes (set up nicely by T.J. Ford) helped suck the life out of the Clippers. The final trey put the Pacers up nine and was the deciding dagger. Murph finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
T.J. Ford came out of nowhere to produce big time down the stretch in this one. Until the fourth, it was the same old, same old with Ford. Not exactly spilling his guts at either end and offering up a couple of mind numbing turnovers. But tonight when it mattered, Ford stood up to Baron Davis and wasn't going down without a fight. While he made a few key shots and finished a couple of nice drives at the hoop, his assists were the difference in the fourth. Ford had three key dimes in the final five minutes that all set up made three-pointers and buried the Clippers.
Roy Hibbert and Brandon Rush were a bit up and down as they both tried to play through foul trouble. Hibbert only ended up playing 25 minutes and aside from a couple of nice pick 'n roll finishes couldn't make a shot. Hibbert did hold his own defensively though and scrapping with Chris Kaman and helping to hold the Clippers leading scorer to 10 points. Hibbert finished with 3 blocks.
Rush finished the game with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Like Luther helped bolster what little offense the Pacers had in the first half with a couple of three-pointers. He struggled down the stretch, missing two free throws that were a result of two possession-saving offensive rebounds by Murphy and Jeff Foster. Fortunately, it didn't come back to bite the Pacers. Rush also felt the wrath of T.J. Ford after the two weren't on the same page during a critical late possession. Dahntay Jones mediated with an arm around each as they made their way to the bench for a timeout.
Jeff Foster and Tyler Hansbrough did a lot of dirty work during their time on the court. They actually played some together for the second night in a row. As you can imagine, the combo keeps things lively on the court. At the time in the third quarter, the Pacers needed all of the juice they could get and they provided a little boost.
When the game started, I was wondering which players might step up to fill the void with Granger sidelined. As it turned out, nearly everyone did a little something at least a little better than they have been to combine to turn this ugly game and potential fifth-straight loss into a sweet victory. Now the turkey will taste a little better tomorrow.

Pacers Face Opportunity To Show Improvement For Real

Tom Lewis — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:34:42 -0000

Heading into Saturday's game against Boston, no matter how positive a spin I put on my outlook, expecting a win just wasn't reasonable. Once again, I was reminded that anything can happen in the NBA and the Pacers know that can go both ways.

With back-to-back games against the Nets and Knicksbeginning tonight in New Jersey, reasonable minds can easily consider the Pacers' chances of adding two more W's to their winning streak very good. Yet, the recent past has left me with a scarred psyche, with fresh memories of the 2008-09 season when the Pacers often played to the level of their competition, following up thrilling victories with mind-numbing defeats. Bruno lays it all out in his game preview.

Last season, the Pacers had a tendency of following up inspiring victories with depressing slumps. After beating the Lakers at home on Troy Murphy's tip-in at the buzzer, for example, they dropped six in a row. After beating Phoenix on Granger's buzzer-beating 3-pointer, they lost three straight. After beating Orlando at home, they lost in Washington. After beating Cleveland at home, they lost in Milwaukee.

The Nets are desperately seeking a win, but that doesn't change the fact that, like the Pacers, they are missing several players to injury. The Pacers will have to miss shots and get out-worked to lose. On the other hand, if they simply take care of business and bring the effort they have in the past four games, the Pacers should be able to wear down the Nets and bring home a win.

Even if the Pacers are missing shots, they can still win by bringing the defensive effort they've shown recently as well as forcing the action in the lane for easy buckets or free throws. This is how the current 4-3 Pacers are different than last year's 4-3 Pacers. (More notes and links after the jump.)

Tim Donahue at 8.9 highlighted the team's difference in demeanor in the past four games. Some of the new faces have not only helped set the tone for attacking at every opportunity, but they've made it safe for players like T.J. Ford and Brandon Rush to join in and leave it all on the court. As Tim put it:

Last season, the only Pacer that really had the attack mentality that is so valuable in such a system was Jarrett Jack. His loss is a quality loss, but the new faces may make up for it with quantity. Luther Head, Earl Watson and Tyler Hansbrough each bring a great deal of intensity and a willingness to battle. Each has made good contributions so far. However, Dahntay Jones is clearly the most glowing example of this new attitude.

In essence, spilling your guts on both ends of the floor is officially cool. Everybody's doing it.

So this is a big week to put that new-found mindset to the test. With Cleveland at the Fieldhouse on Friday after the Nets and Knicks on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Pacers need to emerge with at least two wins for the three games. Back-to-backs are never easy, but the Pacers should be plenty fresh with all of the time off they've had between games lately. Nothing but a full-throttle effort should be expected in New Jersey.

As Bruno's preview reveals, the players are facing their past foibles head-on and appear to realize there are no excuses for a poor showing this week. That is real nice to see, but words don't produce W's, only actions. So, yes I can't wait to see how this game plays out tonight.

Oh, and since I don't have to focus on one game at a time like the players do, a quick peek ahead exposes a relatively favorable schedule for the rest of November. Finishing 2-1 for the week would be nice and make finishing at least 5-3 for the month a nice goal to expand on this solid start to the season.

Does 5-3 seem reasonable for the rest of November?

Changes Showing Up In Wins For Pacers

Tom Lewis — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:30:32 -0000

Second grade hoops practice had me watching the Pacers' game late last night, but that didn't make it any less enjoyable.

Six games into the season and the off-season changes are starting to show some results. As the players get more comfortable playing together we also get more comfortable watching because we've now seen the good and bad from the new players and the new team which makes it easier to determine whether a player has it or not on a certain night.

Personally, I'm trying to temper my enthusiasm for the defensive effort thus far, but it's hard when the results throw this right in your face: the defense is much better.

The Pacers are currently ranked 8th in the league in defensive efficiency. 8th! Hopes that the defense could just be average have been exceeded so far. There's nothing glaring to point to for the upgrade, but instead a lot of little things with players that know what their doing improving the team-defensive approach and on-ball pressure.

For instance, after the jump, consider the following "little" plays from the third quarter last night that weren't on the highlights nor easy to track in the box score but exemplify the different team on the court this year. Also, a few other thoughts from the win.

With 8:15 left in the third quarter, ball out of bounds on the right baseline under the Warriors bucket. Inbounds pass goes over the top to Anthony Morrow who has a step on Brandon Rush. At first it appears the left side of the lane is wide open for a drive to the bucket, but Dahntay Jones is aware of the situation and jumps in Morrow's path halting him while Rush quickly recovers. Just as quickly, Dahntay jumps back out to his man, Stephen Jackson who takes the pass from Morrow and begins his own drive to the hole. Before Jack gets too far, Dahntay rakes the ball off Jack's foot. Pacers ball.

Agreed, basic help-recover defense, no big deal. I simply point it out because last year that play would've been a dunk or more likely a two-shot trip to the line for Morrow.

A minute and a half later, Earl Watson closes out on Monta Ellis who has the ball on the wing. Watson keeps creeping in on Ellis and gets his hand on the ball before Ellis can make a move. Watson yanks the ball loose and starts going the other way before Mikki Moore essentially tackled him to stop the play. You want on-ball pressure, you got it, in fact, that was on-ball theft.

Other thoughts:

The reason I love NBA basketball is because every possession holds the possibility to see something that makes me exclaim, "Oh, nice!" Subtle, smart plays excite me as much as a high-flying dunk. Two such plays were turned in by Luther Head, who once again impressed in limited minutes. Luther had two offensive plays early in the fourth quarter that were as smooth as they were beautiful. The first ended with a dime to Solo for a big dunk. The other play was a pump fake into an open jumper off the dribble. Splash. Nice, indeed.
As Sean alluded to, the fourth quarter fade appeared to be in full effect midway through the final quarter as the Warriors cut the lead to nine. But the Pacers settled down, traded blows for a few possessions, and made some defensive plays, including and insane block by Dahntay Jones. All the while working the clock to their advantage. Finally when the lead slipped down to seven with three minutes to go, Danny Granger brought it home like the All-Star that he is, although not just with his offense. Granger also snared some big rebounds to close out a few defensive stops which preserved the W.
Remember how glaring the free throw differential was in losses last season. Well, the Pacers held an advantage at the line against the Dubs for the third straight game. All wins. The Pacers have outscored their opponents by 27 points combined in the past three games.
Rapid heart rate hasn't been a problem so far this year. Win or lose, the games have all had double-digits differentials, which means no games decided on the final possession. Midway through last season, any time the Pacers jumped out to a strong start, it was hard to enjoy because you knew it would still go down to the final seconds. You almost wanted the game to just jump to the last two minutes with a tied score. Hopefully the blood will be pumping furiously toward the end of the game against Boston on Saturday. If the Pacers can take the Celtics down to the last possession it will be a good night. Now if they win it will be a GREAT night, but showing up and competing for 48 minutes against the championship-caliber C's would make for a good night.

Pacers 108, Warriors 94: Granger Piles Up The Numbers As Pacers Trample Warriors

spstevenson — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 03:42:14 -0000

More photos » by AJ Mast - AP

Don't be a heel: Danny Granger put together a huge game despite still suffering through a nagging heel injury to be the hero in the Pacers 108-94 win.

Browse more photos »

Beat the bad teams. That's what we've always wanted from the Indiana Pacers. It's great to topple an elite squad once in awhile, but last year's team seemed to always slouch to even their worst opponents' level.

Not this time.

The Pacers scored 64 first-half points and prevented a Warriors' fourth-quarter comeback to capture a 108-94 win at Conseco "Reggie Miller" Fieldhouse. The win puts the Pacers back at .500 in the early portion of the season, erasing the team's first three losses to put them at 3-3 heading into a showdown with the East's elite -- the Celtics -- on Saturday. The three-game winning streak matches the longest winning streak from last year when the Pacers won three in a row in early November.

This is what we said the Indiana Pacers needed to do this season to be in the playoffs: Beat the bad teams; jump out to big leads and keep them; Danny Granger needs to be a leader; and the role players need to step up when they're called upon. Consider them all checked off for at least one game.

Several things happened to get the team its third win of the young season. Granger found his All-Star swagger as he scored 31 points on 12-of-24 shooting, while also nabbing 16 rebounds. He was feisty, unafraid to drive the ball, and looked confident hitting the follow-through. As of yesterday, Granger was still touting how much the heel injury was still bothering him. That wasn't apparent tonight. Good to have you back, Danny.

Then there was Tyler Hansbrough. The rookie continues to be mesmerizing whenever he enters the game. I can't help but follow his every move. He is everywhere. Despite struggling with foul trouble and still limited by his mandated cap of 16 minutes, Hansbrough made the most of his minutes for the second straight game. His 11 points and eight rebounds don't begin to tell the story of how many banged-up bodies he caused on the Warriors' bench. He drew countless fouls on his opponents, jumped around like a jack rabbit in the post and, along with Earl Watson who filled in for T.J. Ford after he left the game with back spasms in the first quarter, provided starter-like playing off the bench.

Overall, the team looked good. The first half was extraordinary (the blue and gold built a 17-point lead at the half), and although they let the Warriors cut the lead to single-digits in the fourth, the Pacers didn't break down completely and give up. If this had been last year, the Pacers would have no doubt blown that lead. No doubt. Thanks to the defensive tenacity of Dahntay Jones, Roy Hibbert and Granger's intensity on offense and defense, it didn't happen. Don't get me wrong, I blacked out for about a minute when Monta Ellis slammed home a dunk to cut the lead to only nine with three minutes remaining. But, the team held strong and did something I wasn't sure it could do. It was like Derek Zoolander learning to turn left. Who knew?

Finally, the team is 3-3. To be fair, however, the combined record of the teams that beat the Pacers is a nice 17-5. The combined record of the teams that lost to the Pacers is an ugly 5-18. Still, the blue and gold is beating the bad teams and their defense, which has held the three opponents to an average of 90 points per game, is providing the backbone. That's a start. Saturday will be yet another test for this group. The Celtics visit the Fieldhouse.

OTHER NOTES

Welcome to the Dahntay Jones block party. The guard rose way above the crowd on four occasions tonight, a career high, to swat away some high-flying Warriors' shots. Two of them were obnoxiously high. The man has some real hops. And this also makes how many career-high's that Jones has set so far this season? Jones had a quiet 10 points tonight but his defensive presence was far from being all quiet on the western front.
T.J. Ford only played four minutes tonight before heading to the locker room for the rest of the night. Back spasms were the cause. Ford looked good though during his brief playing time. He started right where he left off from his two sterling performances last week. He was dishing in the right places, setting up the offense and letting the game come to him while hitting 3-of-4 shots.
In replace of Ford, Earl Watson stepped up to the plate and dominated at the point. He was efficient. He was an offensive threat. And he was a perimeter stopper. Really impressive. His stat line was 16 points, six boards and three dishes, but it doesn't sum up how he is just nonchalantly walked in for the injured Ford and ran the team with ease. Jarrett Jack, who?
Shooting slump? What slump? The Warriors are prone to give opponents wide-open looks beyond the arc and it happened frequently tonight. Luckily, for the first time this year, the Pacers knocked down those shots like a real NBA team. The blue and gold launched 14 (Granger took half of them) and make 50 percent. Hey, it's a start.
Roy Hibbert. Another near double-double (16 points, nine boards). Another team-leading +/- total (+20). Although he picked up five fouls, including two early on that sent him to the bench for an early showcase of Solomon Jones, Hibbert looked good...again. Not only was he looking active all over the court, but when he got to the free-throw line, he was more Reggie Miller than Dale Davis going 6-of-7 from the charity stripe.
Granger showed some intense emotion late in the game when the Warriors were busy mounting their unsuccessful comeback. Granger got into a spat with Anthony Randolph under the basket that was less WWE and more O'Reilly Factor, but it still got the juices flowing and helped the team regain its intensity during the final minutes. Granger is trying to figure out this leadership thing, and the argument was perfectly timed and executed. If you told me it was staged, I wouldn't be surprised. Sometimes you just gotta get into somebody's face. That was one of those times.
Luther Head and A.J. Price received some extended time due to Ford's injury. And...well...let's move on. They combined for three points and three assists. There were some OK moments for the both of them, and not-so-good, and they were fairly uneventful. Moving on.
Stephen Jackson. As much as my cousin would like me to not mention the ex-Pacers player, I need to do it. He was booed routinely this evening by the Fieldhouse crowd, but Jackson even made that difficult as he played only 18 minutes and scored only seven points. Mike Wells re-tweeted the Warriors' beat writer during the game saying that Jackson was not sitting because of any injury.
Coach Jim O'Brien stated that Troy Murphy could be available for Saturday's showdown with the Celtics.

Pacers 101, Knicks 89: Ford Becomes Unlikely Hero As Pacers Earn First Win

spstevenson — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 03:46:43 -0000

More photos » by Frank Franklin II - AP

Al Harrington's game-high 22 points weren't enough to keep the Pacers from picking up their first win of the season as Danny Granger and company nabbed the victory, 101-89.

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Everything is just fine. Order is restored. Let the road to the playoffs begin. Or something like that.

After dropping the first three games of the season in ugly fashion, the Knicks allowed the Indiana Pacers to regroup, recharge and reignite that burning flame that leads to something we like to call...winning. Despite losing Danny Granger to the bench with fouls in the final minutes, it was the team's defense and strong offensive possessions from T.J. Ford (no need to check your eyes, that does read correctly) that sealed the Pacers 101-89 win.

After trailing by six at halftime, the Pacers (1-3) shook off their usual third-quarter blues by clamping down defensively and holding the shot-happy Knicks to only 33 second-half points. The Pacers took charge of the game after Granger fouled out with the team up four points with three minutes to play. Dahntay Jones, who was an offensive and defensive force from the onset Wednesday night, hounded the Knicks post play despite being undersized against the likes of Al Harrington and David Lee. Then an unlikely hero rose from the ashes of the season. Ford, who had struggled mightily in the team's first three losses, made eight of Indiana's final 10 points to put the game out of reach.

The game featured many season "firsts" for the blue and gold. Brandon Rush attempted his first free throw, while also draining his first 3-pointer. Roy Hibbert fouled no one. Granger made big plays. The defense actually put a stop-gap in the middle of the lane. And the Pacers had more free-throw attempts, more rebounds and, most importantly, more points than the Knicks.

Still, these were the Knicks, which along with the Pacers have only one win apiece in the infancy of the 09-10 season. Maybe the Knicks were too distracted by the World Series, but something must be said for seeing, for the first time, some semblance of what the Pacers looked like in games last year. Hey, it's a start. Or something like that.

Other notes:

Another slow start for the blue and gold gang. The offense was stagnant yet again in the first quarter but, luckily, the opponent was the Knicks. The Pacers posted seven turnovers in the first six minutes of the game, along with a staggering amount of misguided passes, blind dribbling into traffic and a blatant disregard for knowing where their teammates were on the court. Then, things immediately shifted for the better when the second unit, consisting of Earl Watson, Solomon Jones and Luther Head, came into the game late into the first quarter. They picked up the game speed and it replaced the lull that shrouded the opening minutes.
Without Troy Murphy available due to injury, coach Jim O'Brien cut the playing rotation down to only eight players. Travis Diener, A.J. Price and Josh McRoberts sat dressed in their uni's on the bench tonight.
Free-throw differential. For the longest time tonight, the Pacers actually dominated in this stat category for the first time since 1971. Midway through the fourth quarter, Indiana had 22 attempts from the charity stripe compared to a paltry four shots by the Knicks. But thanks to a Danny Granger-led fouling spree to finish the game, the Knicks cut that differential pretty quickly, yet the team still compiled a 28-18 advantage at the end of regulation. But hey, at least we know it's possible for the Pacers to dominate the free-throw disparity. Possible.
Roy Hibbert fouled...NOBODY! It's a miracle! Very good night for the big man on offense and defense. I've written a billion times, but the guy needs the ball in the post much more often than he's been getting it. Too many times, Hibbert is being given the ball beyond the perimeter to act as a passing mechanism to further the Pacers' non-existent ball movement skills. He needs the ball in the post people! It may never be pretty what he does in there, but he gets things done.
Granger didn't look right early and often on the offensive end. The heel must still be bothering him pretty badly as his elevation on the jump shot is just not where it needs to be. Still, he came up big in the second half and recovered his box score to garner a team-high 21 points on 7-of-18 shooting. We talking on the boards that this upcoming schedule might be a good time for Granger to sit down and let that heel rest. The Pacers play only game between now and next Wednesday (Friday's contest against the Wizards). Maybe the time off could get him back to Superman status.
Brandon Rush, welcome to the 2009-10 season. He was one of three players to compile double-doubles (Rush had 12 points and 10 rebounds), and his two 3-pointers in the first half kept the Pacers in striking distance for the big second-half run. Jones and Hibbert nabbed double-doubles as well with Jones getting 19 points, 12 rebounds and Hibbert overpowering the small-ball Knicks lineup for 15 points and 14 rebounds.
Lastly, the offense still looked terrible quite often, the shooters still shot a paltry 5-of-21 from beyond-the-arc, the defense allowed David Lee to run wild for 20 points and 19 rebounds, and the Pacers dominated in turnovers again with a healthy 21 total. Still lots of problems. But it sure felt good to get that win. Check out the Knicks point-of-view on the game over at Posting and Toasting.

IC Cold Links: NBA Opening Night Is Here; Pacers Health Improves

Tom Lewis — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:38:46 -0000

The NBA is back!

In just a few short hours the NBA season will tip off in Cleveland where LeBron Jamesand the Cavs will host the reloaded Boston Celtics. Not a bad way to start things off. Other games tonight include Washington at Dallas, Houston at Portland and the L.A. Clippers at L.A. Lakers. Yep, that should get the hoop juices fully flowin'.

The Pacers are set to go to Atlanta for tomorrow night's opener against the Hawks. Mike Wells reports a mixed bag of injury news from practice yesterday. Danny Grangersat out with a bone bruise on his heel. No, it doesn't sound good but all involved insist the injury isn't serious and DG33 will be amped and ready to go tomoorrow.

Also, T.J. Ford, Travis Diener and Luther Head went at it for the full practice and are also set for the opener.

Jeff Foster will join the team in Atlanta but his availability is up in the air and considering he went to Boston for treatment it doesn't appear that he'll be available in to play in Atlanta and in fact, JOB is making that assumption while preparing for the opener.

After the jump, several more links of interest:

PACERS: Hibbert, Rush give cause for optimism
Bruno's latest report focuses on second-year players, Roy Hibbert and Brandon Rush shouldering an important role on the team. Also, Tyler Hansbrough made it through day three of his half-court workouts continuing down the right path toward a full return.
Rest of NBA chasing Kobe and the Lakers
Jeff Rabjohns previews the NBA with a few points of local interest to keep an eye on throughout the season.
Two Hawks starters are on injury watch
Mike Bibby and Al Horfordboth nursed injuries at the end of Sunday's practice, leaving a gaping question mark in the middle and at the point for the Hawks. Sekou Smith has the details.
Pacers-Hawks Preview
Matt Beardmore previews the Pacers-Hawks opener set for Wednesday in Atlanta.
8p9s/Pacers Season Preview
Jared Wade offers up a thorough preview for the True Hoop Network.
The Summer Losses: Rasho Nesterovic
Jared Wade looks at the impact of not having Rasho Nesterovic on the roster this season.
Los Angeles Clippers' Blake Griffin has broken kneecap, out weeks
Clippers rookie Blake Griffin has a broken kneecap and could miss six weeks. Of course he does. Clippers catch yet another bad break.

Former Pacers Already Making New Teams Happy

spstevenson — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:16:42 -0000

More photos » by Terry Gilliam - AP

Marquis Daniels is dominating some of the league's best players in his new green uni. Dominating may be the wrong word, but he's definitely doing something good to make Celtics fans happy.

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Jarrett Jack and Marquis Daniels are making their marks early in their new digs in the NBA.

After both played well, particularly Jack, for the Pacers last season, it is not a surprise that both of them made solid impressions on fans, teammates and coaches during the preseason. They both did it with playing on-the-court as well as their demeanor off of it.

Celtics fans immediately enjoyed Daniels' quirky attitude that he displayed at his introductory press conference and continued during the eight games that he played in his new green and white uni off the bench for the aspiring leaders of the Eastern Conference. Jack, who came off the bench in each preseason contest, could find himself embroiled in another point guard controversy as he's outplayed starter Jose Caulderon and has been finishing games on the court rather than sitting on the bench.

Check out the jump for a look at the preseason stats of the players who left the blue and gold this offseason, compared to the newcomers playing in Indiana this year.

Preseason stats? Yeah, that's what it's come down today. Sometimes the preseason just reiterates what we already know. Danny Granger finished fifth in the league in scoring, Troy Murphy had the third-best rebounding average and T.J. Ford averaged a healthy four turnovers per contest. The same old stuff.

But, then again, some preseason stats throw everything off, such as Roy Hibbert's emergence as the team's second-leading scorer and the NBA's blocks per game leader. He was a beast. So will he be a beast in the regular season? Just keep praying that the answer is "yes" and we'll move on.

So below are the stats for players who left Indy and the players who came into the town. Maybe they mean something. Maybe they mean nothing. But here they are for you to decide. Anyways, it won't matter too much longer. The NBA starts on Tuesday! Time to celebrate.

Former Pacers averages:
Marquis Daniels (Celtics) -- 8 games played (2 starts), 19.9 minutes per game, 47.9% FG, 65% FT, 2.4 apg, 7.6 ppg.

Jarrett Jack (Raptors) -- 8 games played, 24.0 mpg, 37.9% FG, 6.7% 3ptFG, 80.0% FT, 4.0 apg, 7.9 ppg

Rasho Nesterovic (Raptors) -- 7 games played, 15.1 mpg, 35.7% FG, 3.4 rpg, 4.6 ppg

Stephen Graham (Bobcats) -- 8 games played, 18.6 mpg, 32.7% FG, 92.3% FT, 3.6 rpg, 7.6 ppg

Maceo Baston (Pistons, waived at end of preseason) -- 4 games played, 3.5 mpg, 0.5 ppg

New Pacers averages:
Earl Watson -- 6 games played (2 starts), 24.7 mpg, 43.3% FG, 53.3% FT, 4.3 apg, 5.8 ppg

Luther Head -- 3 games played, 26.0 mpg, 68.4% FG, 44.4% FT, 2.3 apg, 11.0 ppg

Dahntay Jones -- 7 games played, 23.9 mpg, 42.4% FG, 74.2% FT, 10.6 ppg

Solomon Jones -- 7 games played (3 starts), 20.0 mpg, 50.0% FG, 75.0% FT, 4.3 rpg, 1.57 bpg, 8.6 ppg

A.J. Price -- 6 games played, 19.3 mpg, 42.9% FG, 33.3% 3ptFG, 33.3% FT, 2.0 apg, 8.5 ppg

Geez, who knew that Solo Jones would be the best free-throw shooter out of the new crop. I'll just assume that's one of those "inaccurate" preseason stats.

Pacers 114, Spurs 112: Pacers Finish Preaseason On Winning Note

Tom Lewis — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 02:26:10 -0000

More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

Danny Granger saw plenty of action in the Pacers' final preseason game against the Spurs.

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The Indiana Pacers finished the preseason on a winning note after denying the San Antonio Spurs a shot at the win on their final possession to preserve a 114-112 win at Indiana University's Assembly Hall.

Several Pacers were pressed to play big minutes in Bloomington which in the end played in the team's favor. After a slow shooting start, Danny Granger put up some huge numbers in his 40-plus minutes of playing time. Brandon Rushplayed nearly 37, while Dahntay Jones (34) and Earl Watson (33) also ran for 30-plus.

In the end, those four players put up the numbers needed to push the Pacers to victory which was well worth the extra minutes considering the how bad things went two days ago in Orlando.

Why the big minutes for four players, you ask? Well, Troy Murphy was slowed by a sore foot but did play 20 minutes. Jeff Fosterplayed 11 minutes but still has the back to nurse along. Then to go along with the dinged bigs, Roy Hibbert and Solomon Jonesboth fouled out. Too bad, since both bigs pitched in nicely while on the court.

After the jump, a little closer look at the numbers.

Danny Granger finished with 29 points, 14 rebounds and 6 assists. He also knocked down 5 three-pointers although 13 attempts is too many regardless of what my inner-gunner is telling me. The good part about those balky 3-ball numbers is that he started out 1-8, so taking the extra attempts to finish the game 4-5 was just fine for a preseason game.

Dahntay Jones seems to find a way to score whenever he's on the court. His ability to run the floor and take the ball to the hoop in the open court helps open up the scoring opportunities. Jones finished with 13 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists as he was able to get some easy buckets and trips to the line. Jones did have a bad turnover late in the game which put the final possession in the hands of the Spurs.

Earl Watson rebounded nicely after a tough night in Orlando to finish with 6 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds and most importantly, 1 turnover.

Like Granger, Brandon Rush also started out struggling from the floor but found a rhythm in the second half and finished with 17 points.

A.J. Price played 16 turnover-free minutes and chipped in 10 points.

Roy Hibbert fouled out in 18 minutes but did chip in 16 points and 3 blocked shots. He also had a few nice finishes including a baseline reverse dunk on Tim Duncanthat drew quite a reaction from Mark Boyle and Austin Crosher on the radio call. Timmy repaid the favor quickly by quietly draining a shot at the other end to even things up.

T.J. Ford stayed in street clothes with a hammy as did Luther Head with an ankle issue which I guess is better than the back acting up again.

For the Spurs, former Broad Ripple Rocket and IUPUI Jag, George Hillhad a real nice outing. No doubt he relished the opportunity to light it up on IU's floor. Hill finished with 21 points and 5 rebounds, doing it like he often did in high school by getting in the lane and drawing free throws.

DeJuan Blair didn't play until late in the third quarter as it appeared the Spurs ran through a full dress rehearsal for the first half through the early third quarter.

Speaking of the third quarter, the Pacers skipped the common let down and instead took control of the game after the break outscoring the Spurs 34-21 in the third.

Don't forget Fan Jam is on Sunday from 3:00PM-6:0PM at the Fieldhouse.

Magic 117, Pacers 87: Short-Handed Pacers Trounced By Magic

Tom Lewis — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:31:38 -0000

More photos » by Phelan M. Ebenhack - AP

Dwight Howard and the Magic made Roy Hibbert and the Pacers feel three feet tall on Wednesday night.

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Well, Roy Hibbert had 20 points and 5 blocked shots. That's pretty good, right?

Let's see, what else went well...yeah, I guess that's about it.

The Indiana Pacers simply had one of those nights and to make matters worse it was one of those preseason nights with a short-handed roster, as the Orlando Magic ran away and hid in the second half handing the Pacers a 117-87 loss.

At full strength, the Pacers have a talent deficit against the Magic, thus having to play harder and make shots to give themselves a chance. Tonight the Pacers had no chance. A second quarter dry spell by the Magic kept the Pacers in the game, but once the Magic got it going again, the Pacers had nothing for them.

Regardless of how the Pacers rate on the effort meter, the shots simply weren't falling, especially from 3-land where the Pacers were just 2-23 from behind the arc. Simple formula: When the Pacers make threes they're dangerous, when they don't they're road kill. Screeeeeeetch...thud.

Afer the jump, a few more thoughts on what we heard from Orlando.

T.J. Ford and Luther Head joined Mike Dunleavy, Tyler Hansbrough and Travis Diener in street clothes. Jeff Foster was also out of uniform resting his back, but he put on the headset and played the role of analyst for Mark Boyle's play-by-play call.
Danny Granger is back in preseason form, struggling to make shots. After his 3-12 effort tonight, Granger is a balky has made just 12 of 35 shots in the last two games. In his defense, Granger's minutes were sporadic in Orlando especially in the first half and he wasn't looking for his shot finishing the first half with one point. We saw how easily he scored earlier in the preseason, so there's no reason to think he won't be ready to fire on all cylinders once the bright lights come on for the regular season.
The Pacers poor shooting wasn't just from behind the arc. They also struggled from behind the charity stripe, making just 14 of 23 freebies. Meanwhile, the Magic didn't shoot much better but with 26 more FTAs the ended the game outscoring the Pacers by 20 from the line.
All of those foul shots were compliments of 32 Indiana fouls. Solo Jones and Granger fouled out while Murph and Hibbert finished with 5 fouls each, most of which were on Vince Carter and Dwight Howard as they attacked the Pacers' soft interior.
Brandon Rush came out with a strong effort at the offensive end. At one point in the first half, Rush and Hibbert were 9-17 from the field while the rest of the team was 5-23. A poor shooting night on the perimeter kept Rush's numbers in check though.
Not a big fan of point guard Earl Watson nearly matching the rebound total of Hibbert and Solo Jones combined. Watson had six rebounds compared to three for Hibby and four for Solo. Foster blamed the lack of boards on a lot of long misses, but that's a bit too easy on the big boys. There were plenty of rebounds of all types. Just another problem area the Pacers couldn't overcome.
Foster had a tough time loosening up in his role as radio analyst, but improved through the second half. His monotone delivery is great for subtle digs, but at first he was just repeating the play that Boyle had called. He found his voice in the second half though and never shied away from pointing out the Pacers' problems. He did have a good line early when he observed that Magic reserve point guard Jason Williams must've spent his year off last year getting arm tattoos.