RealGM

VS

At the not-that-awesome


Starting Lineups



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TJ Ford's plus-minus numbers have been depressing lately. His total plus-minus is 2nd-worst to Troy Murphy, and his per-minute ranks above only Josh McRoberts, Troy Murphy, and Tyler Hansbrough. He didn't register a single point or assist in the Sacramento game, and posted an impressive -20 in the plus/minus category against the Jazz, with 3 turnovers and 5 fouls. He did grab 4 boards and shoot 4-9, so he did something right. Hopefully against the injury-prone Baron Davis he can run until Baron gets broken down and find some guys in the Clipper's broken defense.

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With Eric Gordon listed as questionable, Dahntay may find himself up against Rasual Butler. Dahntay's athleticism may get him some good looks against Butler on offense, but on defense he must be wary of Rasual's length. Dahntay has shown the ability to defend against taller players. If Eric Gordon plays, it's very important to never let Davis or Gordon get hot. Otherwise, it's all over. Dahntay also needs to take care of the ball. He's averaging 2.6 turnovers per game, erasing some of his brilliant defense.

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Al Thornton has offensive prowess and size. Granger must hold him to the perimeter and make him shoot from long range, especially 3's, where he's 30% for his career and only 20% this season. Thornton has been on a hot streak as of late, so Granger needs to step it up even with the injury. Granger's shooting this season is a sub-par 41%, but is still managing 82% from the line and 25 points a game. He needs to break Thornton down early and often. If the Clippers send a better defender at Granger, Dahntay is still there to surprise everyone.

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Troy Murphy got himself a double-double after coming back from injury against Utah, but it wasn't enough. This time he'll be matched against a different kind of rebounder in Marcus Camby and Chris Kaman. Defensively he needs to find a way to prevent Camby from shooting his midrange jumpers and box out. His shooting looks to be free of rust after going 3-6 from beyond the arc in the last game, and hopefully his presence will disrupt the Clipper's defense.

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Roy Hibbert has seen less action since the return of Jeff Foster, and he was in foul trouble against the Clipper last time. Hopefully he can make a statement against an all-star caliber Chris Kaman and establish himself as a legitimate threat to offset Murphy's perimeter presence. Chris Kaman is having a monster year, emerging as a possible all-star, so whether it's Foster or Hibbert, Kaman needs to be kept in check.

The Key Reserves



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Earl Watson registered +10 in plus/minus against the Jazz, and he is still not starting. Jeff Foster looks fully recovered with great rebounding performances as of late. Eric Gordon is questionable for the Clippers, but that doesn't mean the second unit can just relax, because Ricky Davis is still capable of doing damage. Mike Dunleavy has looked good in his return with some quick hands and hustle, but he is still showing signs of rust, particularly from the three-point line and in his drives.

The Coaches



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Jim O'Brien has elected to go with a small lineup in lieu of Troy Murphy. Doc Rivers may be without Paul Pierce, which would deplete his swingman rotation. Jim O'Brien was a one-time coach of the Celtics and his knowledge of Paul Pierce will hopefully translate into a fight. The Pacers have allowed and scored the exact same number of points, but have a slight edge in FG%, which is what O'Brien's focus is on.

Injury Report



Pacers
Travis Diener: Out (Toe)
Brandon Rush: Questionable (Pride, Confidence)
Josh McRoberts: Day-to-Day (Toe)

Clippers
Eric Gordon: Questionable (Hamstring)
Kareem Rush: Out (Knee)
Blake Griffin: Out (Knee)

Final Points



-The front 3 last time was stymied. With Eric Gordon out, the Clipper will rely more on their frontline.
-The Pacers are on a skid, and if they keep losing, changes are going to have to be made.
-TJ Ford. Jim O'Brien. They need to start delivering, even if it may not be their fault that the Pacers underperform.

Tradition






Doesn't stop there.






BEAT THE CLIPPERS!

we were flat at the start of the 1st half, and now we are flat at the start of the 2nd.
Come on Pacers lets get a win streak going

And great game thread Miller. Appreciate your effort.
But we need more activity on this forum. It seems like it is totally dead around here these days.

Granger's down. TJ Ford sucks.

glasket wrote:And great game thread Miller. Appreciate your effort.
But we need more activity on this forum. It seems like it is totally dead around here these days.

It's easier for you Australians to catch these West Coast games, but for the fans in Indy, it's 10:30 pm instead of (?)11:30 am.

Two key plays in the 4th: Dahntay Jones' bogus foul call, and Baron Davis' lucky 3. Two demoralizing plays.

Miller4ever wrote:Granger's down. TJ Ford sucks.

sums it up.

Pacers suck. I'm hoping for a good draft pick now.

**** the refs on that dumbass foul call. That swung the game. We still might've lost, but not by more than 10.

This game has me really, really angry. I'm pissed off. This place is a graveyard, I'm talking to myself, and nobody cares.

Granger went down. He better sit and rest up. Nobody gets a Pacesetter tonight.

Miller4ever wrote:

glasket wrote:And great game thread Miller. Appreciate your effort.
But we need more activity on this forum. It seems like it is totally dead around here these days.

It's easier for you Australians to catch these West Coast games, but for the fans in Indy, it's 10:30 pm instead of (?)11:30 am.

Haha, good point although it's not quiet 11.30am for us. The game actually started 3.30pm Aussie time .
My comment was more general though, back when I joined in 2007 there seemed to be much more activity on the boards. Now with this poorish start to the season it seems even the most diehard fans have had enough.

BTW what happened to granger tonight with the injury?

He aggravated his bruised heel. Hopefully this forces him to slow down and rest.

Nice game thread Miller. It's about the only nice thing I can associate with today's game.

I don't think I've ever felt so apathetic and indifferent towards a Pacers team before. When we were down 4 with 6 minutes to go I told my buddy who's not a Pacers fan that we'd end up losing by 10 or more and he said, "man you're only down 4 with all that time left. I bet they win." Sure enough, Clippers go on a 9-0 run sealing it and win by 16.

It's come to the point where I expect to lose any game, regardless of the opponent. I know we have the Nets on Friday, I fully expect a loss, especially if Granger can't go.

This team just doesn't get me excited like last year's team. No matter what, they always fought till the end and that passion, pride, pacers slogan was appropriate. Long story short, I miss Jack and Marquis. I wish Jack, especially, was here to light a much needed fire under their collective asses.

And TJ Ford... are you serious? I wish I wasn't exaggerating, but is there a worse starting PG in the NBA right now?

Anyways, sorry for the rant. On to Portland on Wednesday.

It honestly would've been close and the Pacers wouldn't have given up if only the bull foul call on Dahntay at the end there didn't happen. That foul call and the Baron Davis 3-pointer that happened the play after just shattered the spirits of this team. At least Watson finished the game. Don't know who else I can say that for.

Miller4ever wrote:It honestly would've been close and the Pacers wouldn't have given up if only the bull foul call on Dahntay at the end there didn't happen. That foul call and the Baron Davis 3-pointer that happened the play after just shattered the spirits of this team. At least Watson finished the game. Don't know who else I can say that for.

When are we going to stop making excuses for the fact that our team is horrible. They're 6-12!! They won't play hard for more than 1 quarter a game, and we have a coach who doesn't know what he's doing and a starting PG who doesn't even know that he has teammates. We are a terrible team this season.

Didn't say we weren't horrible, or making excuses. I said that that foul call was a kick in the nuts to the Pacers.

Kuq_e_Zi91 wrote:Nice game thread Miller. It's about the only nice thing I can associate with today's game.

I don't think I've ever felt so apathetic and indifferent towards a Pacers team before. When we were down 4 with 6 minutes to go I told my buddy who's not a Pacers fan that we'd end up losing by 10 or more and he said, "man you're only down 4 with all that time left. I bet they win." Sure enough, Clippers go on a 9-0 run sealing it and win by 16.

It's come to the point where I expect to lose any game, regardless of the opponent. I know we have the Nets on Friday, I fully expect a loss, especially if Granger can't go.

This team just doesn't get me excited like last year's team. No matter what, they always fought till the end and that passion, pride, pacers slogan was appropriate. Long story short, I miss Jack and Marquis. I wish Jack, especially, was here to light a much needed fire under their collective asses.

And TJ Ford... are you serious? I wish I wasn't exaggerating, but is there a worse starting PG in the NBA right now?

Anyways, sorry for the rant. On to Portland on Wednesday.

That's funny. I tell my brother that the Pacers start the game down by 10 points. So, if we are up 6, we are actually down 4 because the Pacers always find a way to donk it off.

Vote:

Jamison Brewer>TJ ford