End of Regular Season

[Miller4ever]

Just a few thoughts from me in what will be a memorable season, starting from the lockout to a great finish.

As you guys should expect by now, I'm going to focus on the positive.

At the beginning of the season, I was optimistic that we would be over .500 and jockeying for position from 4-6. I thought that we would be relatively unprepared next to the other teams that would experience more continuity coming into the season.

We exceeded all of that. Individually, here's how I thought everyone did.

Danny Granger: Started slow. It really did seem like he was experiencing on-court chemistry imbalance. He was more tentative then I'd ever seen him, and when he went aggressive it wasn't quite channeled right. Just not clicking. Yet here we are at the end of the season and thanks to a monster post all-star break run, he's ended the season with 54% TS, while playing the kind of defense we wanted out of him for the last two seasons. He's actually ended the season being the most productive he's been since his MIP campaign.

Roy Hibbert: The questions about his strength and foul trouble and mental toughness were erased when he became an all-star. He gained strength physically and mentally. I want to focus on two areas of the game where his progress interested me. First, his free throws got worse. Early on, when he was around 65% for the season, I started noticing that he was missing everything long, and I'm sure I pointed that out a few times. He was getting used to his strength. He adjusted and is back at 71% to end the season. The second area where his strength played a major factor was rebounding. Rik Smits is no longer a fair comparison. While Smits still has more offensive firepower than Hibbert (which might not be the case given Hibbert's offseason focus) Hibbert has surpassed his legacy on defense and on the boards. Hibbert is essentially a double-digit rebounder and his feel for rebounding was much more improved this season.

David West: Worst case scenario his knee is shot and he is a corpse. Best case scenario he returns to all-star form. While 31-year-old David West isn't at his prime, he has been worth every penny. How many times have we needed a bucket this season and West drops a jumper or hammers it in for a hook or, failing to score, destroys the bejesus out of somebody, doing that thing where he pushes his jersey up with one hand? Like Granger, he has got himself going post all-star break and despite having lost agility, he fits this team like a glove. I thought he would need some time to get into it, too. Instead he had two double-doubles in the first 3 games.

Paul George: He started the season much stronger than he ended it. But it wasn't about production. For Paul George I only want to point to one game. Against the defending champion Dallas Mavericks, on their home floor, he posted 30 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals and 1 block for good measure, while not turning it over once. He did this on 7-11 from beyond the arc. It's not like he's going to average these numbers over a season (most likely not...) but it shows the promise in him. If he fills in the small but significant gaps in his game, he can be really special. With that being said, he met expectations for a sophomore, getting picked as a starter for the Rookie-Sophomore challenge and lighting it up (with the lights off) in the dunk contest. The 3rd season jump will be riveting basketball.

Darren Collison: I'm used to watching Pacers point guards and wincing. I'm not gonna lie. There was some wincing this season. However, it was less than I expected. I trusted the coaches in their utilization of Collison and Vogel's willingness to sit him for key stretches. The point guard position in the NBA is hard to master if you don't have the instincts for it. There isn't a player on the Pacers roster with a complete set of those instincts. I expected Collison to be a game manager, and he was just that, getting his shots in opportunistically and having the best turnover ratio of his career (23rd among qualified leaders, 2 below Rose, 13 ABOVE Williams and 16 above Wall). A positive contributor to the team's 7th-best turnover rate.

George Hill: Right at the heels of Collison comes George Hill. An early season comparison for him was Jason Terry, an important scoring PG who, despite being a bench player, would be very important. He's replacing Collison in what I feel (and the coaches describe) is a "you're not bad, he's just better" benching of Collison. Like Granger he was tentative among new teammates, but not knowing him, I learned to love him quickly because I like his fun off-the-court demeanor and how it's all business on the court. I think he's great for this team in any capacity, so it'll be interesting to see the guards situation for the Pacers next season.

Leandro Barbosa: In a short time, he's already become a fan favorite and really hit the ground running. His shooting from inside the arc isn't so good, but he's been sinking timely 3's at a very good rate, so I'm not complaining yet, especially for the price. His passing has been good, and he's been what the bench has needed to become a complete deep threat.

Dahntay Jones: When the season started I thought smashmouth basketball was going to have a place for him. With the development of George and the acquisition of Barbosa, he's become the odd man out. While he's played, though, he's actually been a good threat from the corners, but he commits too many fouls on both ends of the floor. I personally like him, and I feel like he's a positive presence in the locker room and great for the camaraderie of the team.

Tyler Hansbrough: He hasn't really disappointed, nor has he impressed. He gets some points and annoys people a lot. I imagine he's really good in practice and makes everyone else work harder. His hard work and flailing isn't really working out for him on the court, though. The refs don't seem to like him, and his jumper was weaker this season, as he's just had less shots overall and he is a rhythm shooter. He'll need to get other options so that he has something else to go to when he can't get to the line or make jumpers.

Lou Amundson: Louuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu. He's great. Anything he gets is usually just gravy.

Lance Stephenson: Still a lot of potential, but still very raw. His jumper was inconsistent. When he shot it properly it was accurate, but he has a tendency to let old habits creep in. The same is true for his decision-making. He's what I would expect out of a 2nd-round project player.

AJ Price: I felt he took a step back. He has not been as consistent shooting the ball, but that could just be because of sparse minutes. Still, with Hill gone and Collison gone, there were times when he couldn't get the ball near the net.

Jeff Pendergraph: Optimistically, he could be a long-term backup on this team at the PF spot.

Kyrylo Fesenko: Stanko who?

Jeff Foster: Great guy. Retired always being a positive to the team no matter how bad his game or body was. No mean feat.

[pacers70]

Nice post.

Here's a few thoughts that I would like to mention.

After watching the past couple of games, I think Jeff Pendergraph can be a good 5th big man.

With another summer of hard work and staying out of trouble, I think Lance Stephenson could become the back up SG next season.

The Pacers need to resign Hill and Hibbert. Hill looks like a good leader and a good PG for this team. Resigning Hill and Hibbert will keep the starting line up intact.

If Stephenson can continue to improve in the off season, Collison, Stephenson, Jones and Hansbrough can be the 2nd unit. The Pacers, in my opinion, should draft a big man in the draft. The last mock draft I looked at showed Festus would be available when the Pacers pick. He may be a good choice to become a back-up Center behind Hibbert.

I really like Amundson, but at 6'9" 225, he does not have the size night in and night out to play Center and the Pacers are in good shape at PF, so I don't see anyplace for him to get consistent minutes. I could go either way on whether the Pacers resign him or not.

The bottom line is Larry Bird did an excellent job putting this team together. They performed better than most people (including myself) expected and they are in position to continue to improve.

[Wizop]

Granger. I hope for a jump next year. it took most of this year for him to get used to not having to force things. he still shoots more threes than I'd like and needs to pass more on drives but I think he understands.

Hibbert. he can be a really effective passer even though his title of best passing big man was self-appointed. he played a Princeton offense in college and is used to finding cutters. now all we need are cutters.

West. I wasn't one who say him as a great free agent target for us but he has been wonderful. his game is getting better and better as he puts that injury behind him and he's been the vocal leader who has everyone talking about developing good habits. a keeper.

George. needs to work on his ball handling and to be a little more careful with his passes. I think he will.

DC. came off the bench last night guns blazing. don't know what next year holds but this year with our bench looking to be a strength in the playoffs, I think his game better fits the second units needs. I hope he sees this too and recognizes an opportunity.

Hill. he'll command some good free agent offers. hope we can keep him.

Barbosa. he's a good fit now but I'm less sold on resigning him than I was when he first arrived.

Jones. his best year but probably not a long term fit. I could see trading him for a second rounder but that's improbable. we'll more likely just let him expire in a year.

Hansbrough. needs to develop more moves including a left hand. I'm hoping that his inability to broaden his game this year was a result of the short season without practices but if he doesn't grow he will never be a stater.

Lou. he's Tyler without a shot. exceeded all expectations but could easily be displaced in the draft.

Stephenson. showed the benefits of his season of work when given minutes against the Bulls. given a summer of more good work I can see him making a Barbosa resigning unnecessary.

Price. you need three guys who can play the point to protect yourself against injuries. I don't see him as any more than that third guy.

Pendergraph. high energy cheerleader. like Lou he's more of a 4 than a 5.

Fesenko. I have hopes for him. plays smart. I was disappointed that he was ill for the final game because I wanted to see him against Asik. maybe we'll see that in the Eastern Finals. a summer with the trainers could earn him regular backup five minutes next year forcing Lou and Tyler into a competition at backup four.

Foster. hope they find a way to honor him at a nationally televised playoff game.

[chube]

Excellent post, M4E. I'll chip in my thoughts.

Danny Granger: I knew there would be some adjustments this year and I gave him a learning curve to go along with it. It took him a while, but things seem to be clicking at exactly the right time, as is his jump shot and his mojo. I know there are constantly, "we gotta trade Danny" comments, but I've never once said that. If a perfect opportunity presented itself and someone waaaaaay overpaid, then you'd have to look, but that's applicable to all but about 5 players in the league. He's becoming a great leader and seems to be becoming more and more unselfish and learning how to be an Iguodala-type player (perhaps best overall ability on the roster - although Paul George may overtake him eventually, but decreases his scoring in favor of improving in other areas due to the better supporting cast.)

Roy Hibbert: Without question, my favorite current Pacer. Love his attitude, loves that he's excited and emotionally invested in each game when he's on the court, and he's a great cheerleader when he's on the bench. He's said repeatedly how he loves Indiana and he loves this team, and hopefully that holds true to form this summer. Great community guy and great fan guy. He'll get a hefty contract because he's a 7-footer who has an ever-improving offensive game, can get near a double-double in rebounds most night and has become a great defensive anchor in the paint, going 22 straight games with a block. Still needs to go up stronger at the cup more often, as he gets his own shot blocked too often, in my opinion. From everything you hear about him, he's a great teammate and has a great love and motor for the game, so I'm not as worried about a letdown after getting his big contract as I would be about other players.

Paul George: Great leap from year one to year two, as evidenced by making the Rising Stars Challenge. He seemed to run out of gas towards the end of the season, but he had a double-whammy working against him - the condensed schedule, plus his playing time was so jerked around last year, especially in the transition from Jim O'Brien to Frank Vogel. He only played in 61 games last year, and spent a lot of the middle of the season in street clothes, only to be fresh for the home stretch once Vogel took over. Now that he's played a full season, he'll likely have a more evenly-paced conditioning expectation next year. Nonetheless, a great second year. Made huge shots and led the team on some big wins (Dallas) and nice comebacks (Washington.) A true stat sheet stuffer, I think he can eventually get the statistical balance of a Josh Smith, Andre Iguodala, maybe even LeBron. Not saying he'll be as talented as LeBron (who is?), but in the sense that he's long, quick, good at nearly aspect of the game for his size, and can play and guard a couple positions. Love the future for this guy.

David West: He's another guy who I knew would take time this season, but would bring the leadership intangibles he was brought in for. He had an uphill climb in terms of getting back to his old self this season. For one, coming off a season-ending injury last year at 31 years old is tough enough, but then when you factor in that he couldn't have access to NBA-caliber training staffs because of the lockout, and THEN thrown into a new team with only one teammate (Collison) he's played with before. It took him a while and his stats were down from previous years, though we knew they would be because of the balance of this team. But he filled the gap, gave opposing players headaches, provided leadership, brought a tough/intimidating attitude that really no one else on the team has, while still holding down the fort on his own game. But, like Granger, he's really picked it up in the last few games, right when we need it most. Worth every penny and hope he continues next year, possibly into an extension should both parties choose in 2013-2014 (although Paul Millsap as a 2013 free agent is enticing too.)

Darren Collison: An up-and-down year to say the least. Still a bit of a learning curve from me though. This year, his 3rd season as an NBA player, was his first without a coaching change, and it was a shortened one at that. Nonetheless, his stats don't pop off the page, but they don't have to. Again, this team is about balance, something that was missing when he was he New Orleans. When he filled in for Chris Paul when he was a Hornet, it was pretty much him, David West, and an inconsistent Marcus Thornton. So his stats may have been inflated because of that situation. On a balanced team, he's a solid floor general who is, to me, a deceivingly good ball-handler. While it seems like he turns it over a lot (and some games are worse than others), his assists to turnovers ratio isn't as bad as you'd think. On this team, he might be better served as a second-unit point guard, where he can initiate more offense. A bit of a streaky shooter, but someone who can hold down the fort. There's been a lot of hate for him on this board for being a bad floor leader, but the Pacers have their best winning percentage in years and he was at front-and-center starting point most of that time. It's not all his doing, yes, but he was still running the show with the first unit. He seems to be one of those guy who won't win you a lot of games, but won't lose you a lot of games either.

George Hill Great pickup, especially considering the injury to Collison. Love his versatility, despite being undersized for a 2-guard. Can take over stretches of time better than Collison and is good at finding his teammates. Plus, his athleticism (crazy dunks) and his smarts for the game (like the sneaky using-his-foot-to-get-a-steal-against-Golden State trick) are fun to watch. But then again, he was around Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich for 3 years before being traded to us, so he knows a then or two about learning basketball IQ. Whether starter, 6th man, or 6th man who gets starters minutes, a very valuable piece to this team. The fact that he helped create the G2 zone for the fans (and he's an Indy native) makes me think he's not planning to bolt this summer, unless he gets a massive contract offer.

Leandro Barbosa: Has provided what we got him for. Quickness, steals, and another scoring option, particularly off the bench. This summer is pretty up in the air since he'll be a free agent. He's only 29 years old, so he's still young. It all depends on what kind of contract he's looking for this summer, since he likely won't sniff the $7 million he's making now. His future, to me, is tied to Lance Stephenson's off-season. If Larry, Vogel and the management feel Lance is ready to step into the backup shooting guard role, Barbosa may walk. But he's provided a nice spark to the team for now.

Tyler Hansbrough: We knew his stats would drop when he got moved to the bench when David West came in. But from what I've read, Tyler has taken it very graciously, being a great teammate and likes learning from West. And West probably loves his motor. Tyler still can stretch the floor with his range, out to about 15-17 feet, but as a rhythm shooter, you can see how the reduced minutes has impacted that part of his game. Still efficient while he's in the game and he's still a bloodhound for the basketball. If he's within the vicinity of a loose ball or a rebound, everybody on the planet knows he's gunning for it. Every team needs a guy like that. And we have ours. Still needs to pass the ball more. Even Chris Denari and Quinn Buckner I think remarked during a telecast this year when he got his first assist after a string of games without one. But as the focal point of the offense with the second unit, he's pretty effective. Love his game, his attitude and his hustle. A true blue-collar player.

Dahntay Jones: Nice year, but made some bad plays and bad times (see the Miami game). But very athletic with a nice shooting range, especially from the corner. Won't be the anchor of 2nd unit, but provides nice minutes when he's in there and some nice highlights here and there. His biggest contribution now will be supporting his teammates, since Vogel has shorted his rotation, leaving DJ as the odd man out.

Lou Amundson: When we traded for him, I was happy, mainly because I knew that we needed to cut our ties with Brandon Rush, and Rush needed a change of scenery, too. He's had a nice year in Golden State, so good for him. Anyway, Lou has quickly become a fan favorite. Him and his Ponytail of Death. Doesn't provide much offensively, but when he does score, it's usually in highlight fashion (dunks, alley-oops, putbacks.) That 21-point game he had in the blowout against Portland was particularly fun to watch. But, like Tyler, he has a nose for the ball and is pretty good at help defense and getting to spots where he can rack up a block or two. Yeah, when I see another Pacer about to throw him a pass, I gulp because I don't know what's about to happen. Great energy guy who filled in tremendously as an undersized center backing up Hibbert. He wouldn't have gotten as many minutes had Foster been healthy and won't next year if we sign a true backup center. But I'd like to keep him. Can never have too many hustle guys who have a nose for defense. If nothing else, he could get spot minutes when the Pacers need to go small, and still get spot minutes as a backup 4 when we want to give opposing teams a different look, as opposed to the offensive-minded Hansbrough.

Lance Stephenson: Was the Bulls game the other night an anomaly because of the rare start and playing time since other players were resting for the playoffs? Or was it a sign of things to come? Obviously, we all hope it's the latter. Still a freak athlete who can be a great return on his investment - a second-round pick and corresponding contract. He stayed out of trouble this off-season, maybe he knew he was running out of strikes. A lot of the season, he looked lost, both on offense and defense, and had trouble shooting and seemed to be involved in a lot of turnovers. But he's had such few and sporadic minutes, Lance seems that he needs to really be in the flow of the game consistently to be effective. But from many accounts, he's worked hard this off-season, and hopefully he does again. I don't know if I'm ready to hand over the keys to the backup 2-guard spot to him yet, so this summer will be very telling for him and possibly Barbosa, as I mentioned earlier. Lance's development this summer likely ties directly into Barbosa staying or going (or another shooting guard being brought in.) I'll continue to trust Larry, Vogel, and the management.

Jeff Pendergraph: Not tons to say considering how little we saw of him. He had a very nice per-minute efficiency the other night in his spot-start. Nice energy guy who always seems to be invested in the game, even when he's on the bench. Solid on the boards and a nice cleanup guy. Although I do prefer Lou over JP because of Lou's quickness. No reason to not keep a roster spot open for JP going forward though.

A.J. Price I gotta be honest, I like him. When Collison and Hill were out with their respective injuries, he filled in pretty nicely. Has a nice 3-point shot and is pretty quick. Also, he has a good court vision, as he was on the giving end of some nice alley-oops this year. Due to the roster and the rotation, we've seen so little of him going for long backup-like stretches of playing time this year, so it's hard to tell how he would fare as the first point guard off the bench. But I think he's definitely worth keeping around. Whether it's due to injuries, foul trouble, whatever, having a 3rd reliable point guard is a luxury. A.J. Price is our guy who fits that bill.

Kyrylo Fesenko: Again, not much to say. In a perfect world (injury-related), he wouldn't have been a Pacer at all. Not to say that I don't like him or anything. Just that had Jeff Foster not had to retire, he wouldn't be here. But we got him for a couple reasons and in his limited appearances, he's done what was asked of him - bring toughness in the post, clog the paint, bother shots, and grab a rebound or two. In his limited run on the floor this year, no complaints.

Jeff Foster: Feisty Foster. What can we say. He did what he needed to do when he needed to do it and still had a nice nose for defense and rebounding despite his age and injury problems. (Actually just saw a poll that claimed he was voted the 4th dirtiest player in the league...okaaaay. Probably because he actually knocked Rose around a little bit in the playoffs last year.) Whatever. He won't go down in Pacers lore, his jersey won't ever be retired, nor will his image be plastered among the likes of Reggie Miller, Rik Smits, Mel Daniels, George McInnis, maybe even Danny Granger or Roy Hibbert in Bankers Life Fieldhouse (or whatever it will be called by then) 20 years from now. But every Pacers fan from 1999-2012 will always have a soft spot for Jeff Foster. My only complaint is that he announced his retirement after the trading deadline, if Larry was eyeing somebody like Chris Kaman. Oh well. I could easily see him having some kind of front office role, whether it be management, assistant coach, broadcaster of community relations. Thanks for your years of service, Feisty.

[8305]

Granger and West pretty much met my expectations and their regular seasons would have to be deemed successful based on all the wins. At the end of games when these two make plays we generally win. But now it really starts. How they perform in the playoffs will in the end determine how we feel about them moving forward.

I would also say the other starters (Hibbert, HIll and George) met my expectations also. These guys showed the improvement and promise to make me think this team could ultimately compete for a championship even without adding another big name. They've got to continue to improve but that seems a reasonable expectation.

Hansbrough and Collison both made nice contributions this year. But I put both of them in the category of expendible. Neither look like starters on a good team and both are free agents next summer. This offseason is probably the last opportunity to move them with any kind of value coming back. I think the Pacers have to seriously consider that path.

This summer the Pacers will have to decide if they want to create an opportunity Lance Stephenson. If they want to go that route bringing back Leandro Barbosa would be a waste of money. I wonder how much of an investment would be needed to bring back Amundson? With all our scorers he might be a better fit than Hansbrough.