Why would I target Turk, Diaw, and Gallianari...

[dwpacer]

Well something Bird said a few months after coming aboard as president stuck with me, but was forgotten amongst some fans.

It was a conversation before the whole inadvertant racist scandal that had Bird and Magic Johnson together and in that discussion the thought of what the league is quickly becoming came up. The gist of it all is that both of them feel they are heading into a time here soon that you can get six guys in the tall range (6'8" and up) and have that be your starting lineup, basically five Magic Johnson type players, five Larry Bird type players, or some combination there in.

I believe that this is what Larry is building here in Indiana, though inadvertant as it seems.

Danny Granger drew comparisons to a taller version of Scottie Pippen on draft night and has grown into his own man. If he becomes a complete player going into this season which has been JOB's request, then look out for him to start hitting a lot more 30-40 pt nights.

Then you have the Shawne Williams trade. Many teams were afraid of the youth and had every right to be and yes Williams has had a rocky road, but if he can put the past behind him and focus on the here and now I think he can start along side Granger and Dunleavy by the trade deadline.

After that is Mike Dunleavy, who is becoming a complete package player in his own right. A big slow defensively, but still an able passer who has shown a lot of 20-7-4 nights in the past year.

And don't ignore the Euro bigs whatever you do, Lorbek should be coming over this offseason once he gets released from his European ball club, and Stanko Barac was a PG before he hit his growth spurt playing pro Euro ball. In fact that's the one commonality with a lot of tall Euro players is that they start out as 6'3"- 6'4" PG's before they spurt between 3-8 inches and grow into the players they are now.

So yeah, I'm thinking that could be quite a team having five guys who are complete players playing the game together on the court.

That's just what I've seen and what I'm thinking about thinking that's Bird's and Magic's visison for the league and Larry is gonna do what he needs to in order to get it done.

[Grang33r]

Good post. Thanks for coming over.

I'm not a big fan of Shawne Williams but majority of the guys here are. And honestly, i am not a big Barac fan. I do think Lorbek can make an impact. He's quick, has good hands and a nice shot. He's also above average defender. SLAM magazine recently compared Granger to Pippen as well. I do like the comparsion i just don't think we can play both Granger and Dunleavy at the same time, esspicially if Williams is starting.

No matter how good Dunleavy and Granger play, we are not going to be doing that much damage without a PG. I know, if O'Neal plays next season, that we are most likey a 6th, 7th or 8th seed in the East (although a few teams should be getting MUCH better as well - Knicks, Nets, Bulls) but IMO true playoff teams in the East are top 6 only. Being a 6th seed gives you minimal chances but it's a legit spot. 7th and 8th is worthless.

I'd prefer picking top 10 in the draft then make the playoffs as a 7th or 8th seed.

Sorry, it's honestly how i feel.

[xxSnEaKyPxx]

I think it all depends on the players you have. Obviously none of them will be like a Magic Johnson, he is the only very tall PG that has really succeeded. There aren't going to be many 6'7 PG's that can guard Chris Paul and the other quicker NBA guards.

Diaw is too over-payed, unless we can move Murphy to get him, pass. Turk is basically Dunleavy, they have the same strengths and same weaknesses. I like Gallinari, more than I thought actually. I just read recently he has a lot of PG skills, had I known that I woulda voted for him earlier on the draft board polls, however we won't be able to get him at 11. Even then I don't think he'd be able to play a NBA point, especially since I hear they expect him to grow to 6'10. Its not as easy as drafting tall guys, you got to find the right mixture, and none of these mix with the Pacers.

[dwpacer]

If Gallianari squeeks past Milwaukee at #8, I think he can and likely will fall to Indiana.

But right now at least 3 teams, Miami, Seattle, and New York, are looking to move their picks if it means taking a big salary/ quality player, depending on who they look at.

I should also add that vs. players that are smaller and quicker, wingspan can make up for footspeed and guarding size works both ways.

One more thing, yes 5 tall guys can play the game well. A usual starting five will have roughly 15-16 assists in the starting five alone with half of that belonging to the PG position, but imagine 5 guys who can average 3-4 assists per game. I beleive that equals no difference.

[xxSnEaKyPxx]

If we move up to draft another SF I will be pissed. I'd be fine taking Gallinari if he falls to 11, but if we move up and take another SF I will lose all confidence in Larry Bird.

[dwpacer]

Truthfully he's a SG/SF type and if the Pacers moved up to get him I wouldn't be suprised provided they have a gameplan to acquire another pick further down the line.

If they are going to turn the #1 and #2 scoring reigns over to Granger and Dunleavy then I would want a pretty good SG/SF type to be our 6th or 7th man off the bench.

[APerna]

I think Danilo will go to New York, never getting to Milwaukee.

[dwpacer]

I think Danilo will go to New York, never getting to Milwaukee.

Why would they do that when they already have Chandler and Balkman at SF?

[FreeRon]

Because Chandler isn't that good and evidently D'Antoni doesn't care for Balkman....

[Scoot McGroot]

I think Danilo will go to New York, never getting to Milwaukee.

I don't know. I see what you're saying, and Danilo does seem like a good fit for a Mike D'Antoni system, but I think you'll see Quentin Richardson have a resurgence in Mike's system and start at SF, with Wilson Chandler getting a solid chance there as the backup SF.

Unless D'Antoni ends up getting NY to take the perfect multi-use SF in Danilo Gallinari, I see him ending up in Milwaukee. Seattle already has Durant, and the Clippers seem to love Al Thornton (for good reason). Memphis is pretty set at the wings with Gay and Miller. Milwaukee just makes the most sense to me.

[dwpacer]

Yeah, but one scenerio I can see if the Bucks taking Eric Gordon should he fall to the Bucks at #8 then trading Michael Redd out of their for another teams small forward, perhaps to Miami for Shawn Marion.

That will give the Bucks the team they can run with in Williams, Gordon, Marion Yi, and Bogut while Miami reloads with quality shooters.

[Bucky O'Hare]

Gallinari is an absolute stud. A 19 year old 6'10" SF that's already one of the stars of Europe. He's not your typical Euro prospect, he's a proven commodity. I can see him going top-5.

[cdash]

I really, truthfully, honestly believe that Bird has no plan or vision whatsoever with this team. I'd love for the Simons to realize this and hand over control to David Morway. I dont know why, but Chad Ford mentions Morway's name every time a GM opening comes up. Apparently, front office people around the league see him as a "rising star".

[APerna]

I don't know. I see what you're saying, and Danilo does seem like a good fit for a Mike D'Antoni system, but I think you'll see Quentin Richardson have a resurgence in Mike's system and start at SF, with Wilson Chandler getting a solid chance there as the backup SF.

D'Antoni is going to try and make his own mark in New York, and bringing in Danilo I think would help that. He plays favorites - perfect evidence is the rumors of him trying to get Leandro and Diaw (his favorite Suns) on the Knicks.

I see Quentin playing well as well, but I'd see him as a large two, rather than a three...but only time will tell. We have another month to muse on these things...

[dwpacer]

Yeah, but one counter argument is the fact that the Knicks are trying to acquire an ending contract in exchange for their first round pick and either Curry or Randolph. D'Antoni doesn't run the Knicks, Donnie Walsh does, remember that.

[APerna]

Walsh does run the Knicks, but D'Antoni will play a factor. The pair have already met to discuss the roster, and there are also the aforementioned rumors about D'Antoni asking Donnie to acquire Diaw and Barbosa.