Indiana Pacers starting 5 in 2010-11

[grewich]

why not start

collison
george
granger
hans
hibbert


play the youth and watch them grow together. kinda like the Atlanta Hawks. as a fan its easier to watch the team lose as long as theyre young and growing as a team. might as well let the chemistry brew for a season or two. Chemistry is almost as important as talent.

[Granger da OG]

Collison/Price/Ford
George/D.Jones/Rush
Granger/Dunleavy/Posey
Psycho/McBob
Hibbert/Foster/Jones

[Miller4ever]

He also shot 36% from the floor which is terrible for a backup point guard let alone a starting power forward. So those were some very inefficient 9 points he was putting up on average. Also....it would be nice if he made it easier on himself by learning to pass.

First, there were lots of times he missed down low when he should have gotten a foul call. Second, he grabbed up to a quarter of his own misses. Third, being able to get to the line so much increases any player's efficiency.

I am confident that if given better than the crappy circumstances he's had to suffer through this last year, he'd be much better.

Even at 36% shooting, I feel like his positive impact was undeniable.

[Wizop]

I don't get why Paul George wouldn't see many minutes when your front office picked him ahead of Cole Aldrich and Ed Davis? They must've been intrigued by his potential so why wouldn't he start? It's not as if you're in a win-now mode anyways

realities of pro ball. coaches can't afford to play the rookies with next year in mind because if they lose too many games as a result the coach won't be here next year. gm's have the same problem. I suppose college coaches do too because you don't see them sitting seniors in order to play freshmen in order to win games next year.

also coaches believe in minutes being earned. you'll find plenty of Pacer insiders who will tell you that Isiah made a major mistake handing Tinsley a starting position in training camp and that was a major reason he plateaued so quickly. until the rooks learn the system and how to defend, expect spot minutes.

[DWadeno3]

I don't get why Paul George wouldn't see many minutes when your front office picked him ahead of Cole Aldrich and Ed Davis? They must've been intrigued by his potential so why wouldn't he start? It's not as if you're in a win-now mode anyways

realities of pro ball. coaches can't afford to play the rookies with next year in mind because if they lose too many games as a result the coach won't be here next year. gm's have the same problem. I suppose college coaches do too because you don't see them sitting seniors in order to play freshmen in order to win games next year.

also coaches believe in minutes being earned. you'll find plenty of Pacer insiders who will tell you that Isiah made a major mistake handing Tinsley a starting position in training camp and that was a major reason he plateaued so quickly. until the rooks learn the system and how to defend, expect spot minutes.

I get it but your owners have to realize that winning now is not possible. I'm not saying your team sucks but a 35-40 win season is not gonna take you anywhere and if you have a talent like George on your roster, you've got to take advantage of it. There's a difference in losing. You can lose by just playing bad basketball but you can also lose and still improve, which is something that will automatically happen with your squad.

[Miller4ever]

I think George can contribute right away and we will win basketball games. Tinsley was in a situation where he plateaued from a number of unfortunate reasons, from being unhealthy to his mother's untimely parting. We will see with George.

[KennerLeaguer]

First, there were lots of times he missed down low when he should have gotten a foul call.

Can't every player claim the same thing? And yet still you don't see that many first round picks shooting way below 40%.

Second, he grabbed up to a quarter of his own misses.

Okay, but so?

Third, being able to get to the line so much increases any player's efficiency.

Not enough to overcome 36% shooting from the field. Increased minutes for Tyler will either mean he becomes more comfortable and experienced and his fg% shooting greatly improves OR teams figure out his weak points and don't bail him out as much by sending him to the line.

Even at 36% shooting, I feel like his positive impact was undeniable.

Maybe. I still wish he would learn how to pass though. Doesn't look for anything but his own shot when he is on the floor as if he has something to prove. Or maybe he thinks he is still at UNC. Looking for teammates on the floor would open up his game more IMO.

[Indy2thaWindy]

Even at 36% shooting, I feel like his positive impact was undeniable.

Maybe. I still wish he would learn how to pass though. Doesn't look for anything but his own shot when he is on the floor as if he has something to prove. Or maybe he thinks he is still at UNC. Looking for teammates on the floor would open up his game more IMO.

Yes, Tyler reminds me more and more of Kris Humphries. Humphries is the most selfish player in the NBA. He hustles a lot and can grab a good number of rebounds, but on offense he only looks for his own shot and never passes. If Hansbrough ever becomes like Humphries, he should looked at tobe traded or waived. If any of you have seen Humphries play you probably know what I'm talking about and Hansbrough reminds me a lot of him. Let's hope Hansbrough never becomes like Humphries.

[DeeJay]

I would like to see the lineup of:

PG: Collison
SG: George
SF: Granger
PF: Hansbrough
C: Hibbert

Although i doubt George will start and also not sure about Hansbrough seeing as Foster is a possibility. If Paul doesn't start, i'd want Rush too. Or Jones if he doesn't.

[Wizop]

I get it but your owners have to realize that winning now is not possible.

I think the owners are more concerned with losing at the box office than on the floor right now. they've been losing money by the boat load. I think Herb Simon has patience but I'm not sure the next generation of Simons are prepared to write checks forever. with the Colts on a roll, Pacers are playing second fiddle until February and if they are out of contention by them, it's hard to sell tickets.

speaking of Colts, saw Jeff Foster and Mike Dunleavy at the Colts game last night. didn't have a chance to speak to Mike but I asked Jeff if he and Mike were ready to go and he said he couldn't speak for Mike but he was more than ready. if he's healthy, there's your starting 4.

[mizzoupacers]

I think George can contribute right away and we will win basketball games. Tinsley was in a situation where he plateaued from a number of unfortunate reasons, from being unhealthy to his mother's untimely parting. We will see with George.

I propose that from now on, we have a rule that George can't be mentioned in the same sentence with Tinsley (or Artest, or Jackson). Don't taint the kid.

Tinsley isn't really a very good comparison anyway. Coming out of college, Tinsley was a senior and had played for a top ten program at Iowa State (they were arguably the second-best team in the country his first season there), and he ran that team. Whereas George was just a sophomore, and at a pretty low-profile school.

Wizop, I honestly think that Tinsley was ready to start as a rookie, and was the best choice to start on that Pacers team. I think his problems later on probably were due to things outside of basketball, not being thrust into the starting lineup as a rookie, but I guess we'll never know for sure.

I have no idea what to expect this season from George, anything he contributes will be greatly appreciated by me. I'm happy the Pacers picked him, but prepared to wait awhile for it to pay off.

[Miller4ever]

I think George can contribute right away and we will win basketball games. Tinsley was in a situation where he plateaued from a number of unfortunate reasons, from being unhealthy to his mother's untimely parting. We will see with George.

I propose that from now on, we have a rule that George can't be mentioned in the same sentence with Tinsley (or Artest, or Jackson). Don't taint the kid.

I never technically put him in the same sentence.

[mizzoupacers]

My apologies. I see now that you exercised due caution. I saw "Tinsley" and the flight-or-fight reflex kicked in.

[Miller4ever]

I reflexively want to delete any threads with that word in it.

[Wizop]

you can get a good idea of the early leaders from Mike Wells blog re the scrimmage at practice.

"The blue team consisted of the “starters.” Collison, Dunleavy, Granger, McRoberts and Hibbert. [but were dominated by] The gold squad [of] Stephenson, George, Rolle, Posey and Foster."

[Miller4ever]

All Foster.

[mizzoupacers]

The contest for starting power forward is going to be fun to follow. Could be that none of them have a ceiling for this year beyond "adequate," but they are all easy guys to root for, at least for me.

I think it will be a good sign for the future if Hansbrough emerges as the starter. I think he has more potential than Foster or McRoberts. But I also think Magnum Rolle might be a sleeper candidate. I wonder how soon he might be ready to contribute, assuming he has something to contribute.

To me, Foster and/or McRoberts would seem more ideal as role players off the bench than as starters. That's not to say they couldn't be adequate starters--Foster, when healthy, has already proved he can be. But I think he's well beyond merely "adequate" as the first big guy off the bench--he'd be a great short-rotation guy, probably one of the better ones in the league, and that's the role I hope he can have on this team.

I don't think Solomon Jones really belongs in the discussion, and I hope we only see Granger playing out of position on rare occasions. That about covers all the power forward options, although in today's Indy Star Dunleavy claims he can play four positions and I'm guessing he didn't mean center.

[Wizop]

perhaps a more interesting question at this stage is not which five starts but who gets cut and which three are inactive. who are the top 12 and who are the bottom 3?

one point guard will probably sit. assuming TJ is on the squad, I'd think Price would be inactive early because of his injury although it could be Stevenson until he learns to defend. Collison will start.

five wings sounds like the normal max. I see Dunleavy and Granger starting. Rush is obviously inactive for five games and maybe that makes the opening night decision easy. George, D Jones, and Posey complete the choices. trading D Jones would eliminate the issue but also eliminate the depth unless you want to consider Stevenson at two. Posey could provide leadership even in street clothes but I expect him to justify PT.

if we carry five wings and three point guards, there is only room for four bigs and we've got six. Hibbert, Hansbrough, Foster, McBob, Rolle, and S Jones. if only S Jones sits, then you probably have to sit both D Jones and Posey.