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I think if you had told me at this time last year that four guys that were pretty regularly in our starting lineup would be gone, that not only were we not keeping Paul George but that his return in trade was much less overwhelming than we probably would have judged it to be at that time, and that there is serious question about whether or not we're even a playoff team next year . . . I would have expected to feel worse about our direction as a team than I actually do. It's a notion I've been seeing a lot more of lately than I really expected. I know there are still some people with some disappointment about PG's departure or our draft selections, and I totally get where that's coming from to some extent, but I've been seeing a lot of optimism about the team too. I am kind of surprised and also very pleased with it.

I've seen talk about the potential talent of our young core. I've seen some compliments on what Pritchard managed to do even though he walked into a tough situation still brand new on the job. I've heard talk about a team with better chemistry and more work ethic than the one we witnessed last year. I've seen a lot more positivity than I expected to see despite the tough situation that arose when PG informed the team he wasn't going to come back.

I know not everyone agrees with it, and that's okay if you don't, but honestly I'm kind of super stoked just to see that it's out there.

Edit: Some examples of things I've been reading.

http://www.1070thefan.com/blogs/brunos-blog/dont-look-now-pacers-arent-all-bad

http://8points9seconds.com/2017/07/11/kevin-pritchard-won-offseason/

http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nba/pacers/2017/07/14/insiders-report-card-grading-pacers-offseason-moves/478698001/

Average age down to 24. Lots of potential. Big change in a single month. They planned ahead better than we realized with contracts expiring this year and next.

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It's hard to root against this team. There's a ton of optimism around this team because it feels so fresh.

We've got a super young team, Myles Turner is now in the driver's seat and he's the most likeable Pacer that perhaps we've ever seen (and he wants to be here), an Indiana Hoosier, and many more new pieces. It's fun to watch this team develop.

I agree, this team is much easier to root for than our team last year and will probably be more fun to watch. Last year we had a bunch of talented guys that didnt fit together and maybe wernt all about winning, I doubt we have that problem this year.

Just wanted to drop by as I don't think I have since the trade, but you guys will absolutely love Dipo and Domas. They were both monsters on defense last year, and Vic's defensive measures were better than Robersons in the end. I'll be keeping an extra eye on those two.

The PG trade hurt, but it is what it is. Pritchard did a great job getting some flexibility and a few interesting pieces. I'm still more in favor of tanking, but we all knew that was never happening. It's Turner's team now and there's a bunch of young guys, even if there are no other super high upside ones. The team should be fun to watch with a bunch of prospects likely getting decent minutes.

Of course we're optimistic. That's what summers are for. The season is when pessimism will once again ride in on its black horse.

I can see why.

Leaf is like a taller, more talented Niang.
Anigbogu is like a taller, more talented Christmas.
Sabonis is like a taller, more talented Lavoy.

Stephenson, Jefferson, Seraphin were all three out of shape last season and reports are that Lance is in better shape right now so perhaps one of those 2 centers can stay off the burgers too for a change. Unlikely I know, but maybe that's how Ike will get opportunity

Pacers have a worse starting point guard, but overall point guard rotation might be just as good if not better than last year, because Joseph is an upgrade over Ellis, offensively, defensively and fit. He can play off ball. Hip hip hooray, we have a guard who can play off ball.

I never saw much more in CJ Miles than a streaky shooter. Bojan is not as effcient but he is smarter and I assume he is mentally tougher too. Bogdanovic, I assume, grew up in a war zone. CJ Miles missed that important shot against the Cavs and prefered not to start games for crying out loud. Gimmie Bojan every day of the week. Bojan wants to start and take responsibility.

Mighty Young and 3 work extremely hard, so you never know that they might become good payers one day. My hope for them was never above low.

Pacers still have a piece that few teams have and what is going to be the future of NBA basketball, shotblocking centers who can hit threes. Soon Myles will be big enough to be a very good defender, next season or the season after that.

Finally, Olidapo is significantly worse than Paul, but when you factor in defense and fake leadership, the gap isn't and will not be so huge.

I'm just happy that Paul is out of town and with him, the negative vibes (media complaining), mental softness and fake leadership.
I have always been convinced that the Pacers management acquired way too many mentally soft individuals after the brawl because they were looking for "good" guys. Similar to how Pritchard drafted Leaf and traded for Oladipo because those guys want to be in Indiana and PG didn't. Hibbert, Vogel, CJ Miles, Paul George. Not tough enough for my wishes.

I like the direction the Pacers have taken and the trade return for PG wasn't all that bad. Apart from a few individuals the soft era might be over. Oladipo isn't as talented as George, but he is also much less of a diva and I doubt he will break Paul George his 0-15 go-ahead shots in final 20 seconds record.

https://clutchpoints.com/paul-george-worst-record-go-ahead-shots/

Pacers were not going to win anything with George as leader, so it's all better now.

I'm not rooting against the team but we're in for a long season 30 wins is the most I see even in the weakened East.

basketballwacko2 wrote:I'm not rooting against the team but we're in for a long season 30 wins is the most I see even in the weakened East.

Honestly losses will be a godsend for us this year. We really really need a good pick. For me this season is all about seeing what Turner can do as a first option and getting some other young guys some run. Having flexibility going forward is nice, but it's unlikely we can leverage that into another star level player so we need to get one in the draft.

I'm feeling a lot better post-Paul George than I expected to, and I'm excited to see how our new group fits together and what we look like on the court. And now there is a long, long wait until the season starts when we can actually see some basketball.

Sigh.

I still feel slightly underwhelmed with the return on the trade, however I do really like Oladipo's attitude and the upside of Sabonis.

Bill Polian used to say you were doing well in the NFL draft if you could bat .560. I'm not going to undertake a statistical analysis of the NBA draft but I'd say you were doing very well if you got 2 picks right out of every three and if you buy that getting three high draft picks would have an expectation of getting no more than 2 good players. we got 2 players we've seen perform well at the NBA level. so, we got a return that is likely to be as good or better than what getting 3 draft picks would have returned.

I'm not second-guessing the decision to take what we got over picks.

We also have what should be a top 10 pick and a TON of cap space next summer, I don't think we are in a bad spot at all.

Success for me this season will be developing our young cornerstone players, particularly Turner, and hopefully seeing some good signs from Leaf, Sabonis.

Olidapo can be a long term piece and admittedly I haven't seen a huge amount of him. Hoping he can be a contributor on both ends.

An early pick and a FA for the following year and we should be back in playoff contention given the East remains a softer conference.