Mathurin only 13 minutes vs. Miami: bigger issue?

[Pacers Forever]

Of course I hate to mention this but the Pacer fans from Facebook want Lance Stephenson brought back.

I'm sure they do! But, there's no roster spot for him (would have to waive a Kendall Brown or James Johnson), and this is exactly why you've cross trained Nembhard at the 2, and you've developed Sheppard/Brown. It's also a good spot for Walker/Toppin to possibly get some offensive focus from off the bench. But also, this is the time of year that rotations will start to tighten a bit, and as much as we wouldn't have wanted Mathurin to lose any minutes, we now have to deal without him.

Scoot I guess I didn’t realize that Mathurin going on season ending injured reserve doesn’t open up a roster spot ?

I have seen where other teams have filed for a roster injury exception. Is that what would have to be done if say it was earlier in the season and it was more of a loss than this amount of time ?

[basketballwacko2]

This sort of thing never ends for the Pacers. Seems like New Year - Same Story.

I saw the play it happened on as he was walking back to the bench for the tiime out he was grabbing his arm. It's the kind of freak accidents that happen when you play hard.

[JMaster5K]

Seems like Hali and Ben should work well together but it doesn’t look like it’s happened yet. I like him in the starting lineup with Hali for the rest of the year. The sooner they figure out the chemistry the better.

Caitlin has commented in a couple of her pieces, and on a few of her most recent video-casts, that the numbers with Ty and Benn on the court together "are not good" (strong emphasis in her videos). They haven't learned how to share the court in terms of spacing, or style,... and have a small, but significant amount of overlap in attacking the basket. She commented a couple of months back that this was what had Benn moving back to the bench. His fit is much better with Nemhard, and is particularly good with TJ.

Personally, I'm happy with what I've seen from both of them this year. They are both young, not finished products. There is still time and learning curve for them to learn to play together.

I've started to see posts (as a few here have commented) showing up in a few places from anonymous people with all the answers to make the Pacers an undefeatable, champion contender,... "NOW!",.... We aren't a real contender, yet. Don't think there are any answers to make us one this season. Though watching the changes, growth, and a few surprises has dam sure been fun!

As most of the consistent posters on this site, from this year will remember, the Pacers forecast for this season was 38.5 wins (average of all the sportsbooks preseason). We are on course for potentially a 44-45 win season (which some here predicted.) So, at least for me, I'll stick with our coaches and our players thoughts on what they should be doing. Seems to have worked pretty well so far,... and it seems a bit silly to be second guessing them now,.... LOL =]

[Scoot McGroot]

Of course I hate to mention this but the Pacer fans from Facebook want Lance Stephenson brought back.

I'm sure they do! But, there's no roster spot for him (would have to waive a Kendall Brown or James Johnson), and this is exactly why you've cross trained Nembhard at the 2, and you've developed Sheppard/Brown. It's also a good spot for Walker/Toppin to possibly get some offensive focus from off the bench. But also, this is the time of year that rotations will start to tighten a bit, and as much as we wouldn't have wanted Mathurin to lose any minutes, we now have to deal without him.

Scoot I guess I didn’t realize that Mathurin going on season ending injured reserve doesn’t open up a roster spot ?

I have seen where other teams have filed for a roster injury exception. Is that what would have to be done if say it was earlier in the season and it was more of a loss than this amount of time ?

Good questions. What you're asking about seems to be a mix of two different things in the CBA. Remember, the NBA doesn't have the classic "Injured Reserve" or "Disabled List" like MLB, NFL, etc, where you can place a long-term injured player on to open up a roster spot on the hard limit.

1) Disabled Player Exception

DISABLED PLAYER EXCEPTION -- This exception allows a team which is over the cap to replace a disabled player who will be out for the remainder of that season (it can also be granted in the event of a player's death). This exception is granted by the league, based on an application from the team and a determination by an NBA-designated physician or Fitness to Play panel (see question number 62) that the player is substantially more likely than not to be unable to play through the following June 15.

If this exception is granted, the team can acquire one player via free agent signing, trade or waiver claim, to replace the disabled player:

The team may sign a free agent for one season only, for 50% of the disabled player's salary or the amount of the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level exception, whichever is less.
The team may trade for a player in the last season of his contract only (including any option years)2, who is making no more than 50% plus $100,000 of the disabled player's salary, or the amount of the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level exception plus $100,000, whichever is less.
The team may claim a player on waivers who is in the last season of his contract only (including any option years), who is making no more than 50% of the disabled player's salary, or the amount of the Non-Taxpayer Mid-Level exception, whichever is less.
Teams can apply for this exception from July 1 through January 15, and cannot apply after January 15. Once granted, the exception expires when a player is acquired, when the disabled player is traded or returns to the team, or on March 10 of that season, whichever comes first.

A disabled player exception (or DPE) grants a team a salary exception with which they can sign a player, but not a roster spot to sign that player to. A team would have to have an open spot on the 15 man roster limit (not a two way) to sign, claim, or trade for a player using the DPE.

2) Hardship Exception

A hardship can be deemed to exist when a team has four players who are sick or injured and have missed at least three regular season games, and will continue to be unable to play. If a hardship is granted, the hardship ends when one of the sick or injured players is physically able to resume playing.

A Hardship Exception would actually allow a team to exceed the 15 man roster limit (and 3 two way slots, but two ways do not count toward Hardship Exceptions), but it requires a team to have 4 or more players who are injured for "long term", which is declared as "at least three regular season games". At this point, Indiana only has 2 players who meet that criteria, so there is no chance at applying for a Hardship Exception. To receive a Hardship Exception the team would have to have a petition granted by the league.

*Both quotes are taken from Larry Coon's cbafaq.com

[basketballwacko2]

Of course I hate to mention this but the Pacer fans from Facebook want Lance Stephenson brought back.

I'm sure they do! But, there's no roster spot for him (would have to waive a Kendall Brown or James Johnson), and this is exactly why you've cross trained Nembhard at the 2, and you've developed Sheppard/Brown. It's also a good spot for Walker/Toppin to possibly get some offensive focus from off the bench. But also, this is the time of year that rotations will start to tighten a bit, and as much as we wouldn't have wanted Mathurin to lose any minutes, we now have to deal without him.

Scoot I guess I didn’t realize that Mathurin going on season ending injured reserve doesn’t open up a roster spot ?

I have seen where other teams have filed for a roster injury exception. Is that what would have to be done if say it was earlier in the season and it was more of a loss than this amount of time ?

There is no "injured reserve" in the NBA. If you have a guy who is out long term you can ask for an "Disabled Player Exception."
That might not be the exact name of the Exception, but it gives you the ability to get a guy for 1/2 the money your injured player makes. In this case since he's on a rookie deal and the season only has 20 or so games left I don't see that happening. They just need to give Sheppard and Brown minutes and hope they can contribute enough to make their minutes worthwhile.