dwtaylor1055

I like PG still(hate me all you want) however I am sure he would rather sit a game out due to some kind of soreness than play PF.

PG did us wrong towards the end of his tenure with my beloved Pacers, however he is/was still a hell of a player for the Pacers. He IS still one of my favorite players. I love Vic, he's my favorite Hoosier and one of my favorite Pacers players. I do not like to compare the two. I am probably one of the few PG fans left in Indy. I am glad he is succeeding. If Roy doesn't fizzle out so early( and plays at a high level for quite some time, I don't see West leaving like he did) and PG doesn't break his leg, I think this is a different outcome and we may never be having the arguments of "Should Sabonis be starting over Myles" or "Is Vic better than PG" because I think PG would still be hear and this team would look vastly different. Yes PG according to stats hasn't been clutch, but he is still a hell of a ball player. Vic is a better representative for the Pacers but PG can still ball.

You nailed it, they are heating the system of 3 point shooting and the fouls. Assuming Gasol, Conley and Jackson all stay healthy, they could for sure be a playoff team out west.

The Grizz are my surprise team out west. Conley is playing like an all star PG that he is, Gasol is always going to be good and Jaren Jackson has played better than I anticipated.

Last night was the first time both Myles and Sabonis both double-doubled since Sabonis arrived in Indy. Guys played good, Doug has really turned it on the past two games. They are really looking for him whenever possible and he's looked good coming off of screens and determining whether to take the jump shot or drop the ball off to the screener. Hopefully he can keep it going. So far so good to be 2-0 to open this 4 game western road trip.

Still early but here are Aaron Holiday per 36 minutes stats 9 games into the season: 44% FG, 30% 3pt, 79% FT, 7.8 Rebounds, 3.7 Assists, 0.7 Steals, 21.5 Points

There is a reference in regards to a 2 on 1 rebounding from Thad. This could be why Myles rebounding is low due to always trying to have a body on the biggest defender, relying on a teammate to close in the ball? Just a thought. I am not sure if they just started emphasizing this for this year or last year as well. https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nba/pacers/2018/11/19/victor-oladipo-less-indiana-pacers-steamroll-utah-jazz-121-94/2053707002/

Great win last night without Vic, my two cents: - Aaron Holiday needs consistent playing time(non garbage minutes), kid can flat out play. His fouls will go down as the game slows down for him, still has lots of jitters IMO. - Tyreke Evans when not running the PnR needs to play as an off ball player on the offensive end similar to what Doug is doing, example coming from corner off screens and depending what the defense gives you, either take it in for the layup, dish to the screener that's rolling to the goal or take the pull up shot(instead of dribbling 5 or 6 times then shooting). The movement becomes to stagnant when he has the ball and no PnR action is happening(unless he gets around his defender to the rim). - Nice to see Doug do the little things to get some scoring. Back cutting and slashing for some easy points. He will have to do this every game when he starts out with a miss on his first jump shot or 3pt attempt. - Both Sabonis and Myles played great, 14 or 15 assists from the both of these guys combined. - Pacers defense allowing 96.78 ppg at home, 105.62 ppg on the road.

I haven't noticed time clocks in MBL but I have in triple AAA. If they are not currently being used in MLB, use them in MLB and do not allow the batter to dilly dally between pitches and such. k If the baseball game is too long, just grab another hot dog and beer/drink if you are at the game. Nothing wrong with that is there?

Three things for the Pacers(When the Rockets or whatever team they are playing are hitting whatever they throw at the rim, it's hard to win a game): 1.) Pacers free throws were slightly better last night. but still need to improve. 2.) More plays drawn up for 3pt attempts for Doug McDermott. He's here to provide a threat from behind the 3pt line, he's not helping us if he's only taking 1 or 2 a game. Even if he hits that one 3 pointer, his defense is hurting us and offsetting that 1 3pt shot he made. 3.) Yes I will probably get a lot of slack for this, but Vic needs help with a ball handler aka Tyreke. Tyreke is a playmaker and yes sometimes he tries to much iso ball I know. Tyreke can get to the rim for the most part with ease, yes he struggles at finishing but he's getting to the rim(fouls will eventually start being called). Id like to see a lineup of Cory/Vic/Tyreke/Bojan or McDermott/Myles or Sabonis more often. Run the PnR, if defenders move in/slide down to help, kick out for the open three. If they don't then you have one man to beat to get to the rim or lob it up for the assist.

Still very very early into the season but came across this post for the 2019 NBA offseason: http://bestwnews.com/sport/nba-rumors-malcolm-brogdon-could-leave-bucks-for-pacers-in-2019-free-agency-bleacher-report-predicts/

My two cents(not that it matters because I'm only a fan in the stands): - Shooting 2 of 10 with 7 points and 4 rebounds in 30 minutes for Myles is not going to cut it. If he doesn't step up shortly, he is in for a rude awakening and I love MYLES. - Collison going 0 of 3 with 0 points and 1 assist is not going to cut it from a starting point guard in the NBA. - Victor took too many shots, I would like to see him shoot around 15 per game, I think he tried to much hero ball tonight(could be cause none of the other starters really shot the ball well, besides Bojan and he was 3 for 6 from behind the 3 point line). - Sabonis IS the second best player on this team behind Victor hands down and I will argue anyone that says otherwise, he may not be a top shot blocker even though he is almost 7 foot but the dude hustles, muscles and plays with so much energy regardless if he is shooting 12/12 or 2/10 from the floor. When he gets fouled yes sometimes he may bark at the ref slightly but he hustles back to the other end of the floor. - McDerrmott needs more 3 point attempts, otherwise what was the point in bringing him in as a shooter off of the bench? He had 1 attempt from behind the arc last night, get creative and create 3 or 4 shot opportunities from behind the arc for this guy, he is bound to hit at least 2 out of 4 on any given night right??? - Tyreke can get to the rim with anyone guarding him but he struggles to finish. I think he will start finishing better but him and Sabonis running the P&R is pretty, IMO prettier without the antics that Lance brought with Sabonis last season. Not saying I am right but these are my feelings after 12 games into the season. The season is still young, I will not start worrying until around game 20.

Oh good point, I knew there was another HORRIBLE one but I couldn't remember. That one was real bad. Easily 6 inches between them two when Harden went up for the shot and when he came back down.

Not saying they lost because of some ref conspiracy. There is ref conspiracy in every game in the NBA. Yes a slow start in the 4th contributed to losing the game but when you shoot and miss 10 free throws in the game(9 more than Houston), that IS the biggest difference maker. That is free points with no one guarding you

Agree, if you shoot 47 three pointers in a game compared to the pacers shooting like 25, there is no way you will shoot the same amount of FT attempts as the opposing team.

I was there too, as did I have a good view as well. Yes the pacers missed 10 free throws, that hurt them more than 3 phantom calls(just so happened to be when Harden had the ball in his hands) that went against the Pacers. James Harden goes in for a fast break layup on a steal, Vic contests the layup and as he jumps he jumps in the air away from Harden who misses a point blank layup and a foul is called after the ball hits the floor. Cannot tell me that was a foul. I will argue all day that the three refs last night kept the game close BUT they did miss 10 free throws to Houston's 1 missed free throw.

Very true. I love Jeff Teague but he is horrible on defense and he complains all the time as if he is the best PG in league.

After Saturday nights game clinching shot, the pacers are now 13-2 when games are decided by 3 points or less since acquiring Victor. That is what a closer does. He makes big time shots and his energy and love for the game trickle downs the bench from him all the way down to the ball boys.

He played with the Timberwolves last season. a big man that can nail the 3 pointer which is what they lost with Illyasova last year. Philly will have to rely heavily on their starters. At least Indy has respectable bench players aka Sabonis, Evans, Joseph.

http://www2.philly.com/philly/sports/sixers/nemanja-bjelica-deal-agreement-sixers-76ers-backs-out-minnesota-timberwolves-20180717.html

Nemanja Bjelica. Averaging 15.6 ppg, 6 rebounds, 59% FG% and 55% 3PT%. I believe he comes off of the bench for the Kings, as what he would have been doing in Philly. He verbally told Philly he was going to sign with them, but backed out and decided to sign with the Kings.

Philly IMO is the weaker team out of Boston/Toronto/Bucks/Pacers/76ers(my predicted top 5 for the east). Losing Marco Belinelli and Ersan IIyasova really hurt them and the guy that backed out of a deal during this past offseason is rolling in Sacramento. I do agree that the Bucks are rolling and will be a tough out, the new coach seems to have really brought out another level of Giannis. I think the Pacers get the 4 seed and beat the 76ers in the 1st round and face Toronto in round 2.

I could be wrong here but I think one big difference is that after last year where they took the league by surprise and many doubted them, they are expecting things to come easier to them maybe and settling rather than keeping their foot on the gas?

Pacers 2017-2018 record through 8 games: 5-3 record with 4 home games and 4 away games. 111.5 points scored through 8 games, 107.75 points given up through 8 games. Pacers 2018-2019 record through 8 games: 5-3 record with 3 home games and 5 away games. 108.75 points scored through 8 games, 102.65 points given up through 8 games.

Saw an article that said Tyreke Evans left practice today with an executive from the teams community relations department. That seems kind of odd. Also heard he was late/missed the flight for the Timberwolves game?