Thursday, October 31, 2013

82 and 0 here we come ... well maybe not

Well, hey, at least it's 2-0 after a nice comeback win on the road on the home team's opening night, so we'll take it.
Overall Impressions
There were only two road teams to win out of the 14 games played in the NBA Wednesday night. The Thunder and by now you know of course, the Pacers. That's because for all of these games for the home team it's the home opener and even if the home team is not among the NBA's elite, it's the one night the arena is going to be sold out or close to it. And in the NBA having a big and vocal home crow behind you in the closing minutes can really help.
That's what makes the early season win a nice one, simply because the Pacers were facing that obstacle and were able to overcome it. It's not a huge win in terms of beating somebody like the Heat or Bulls, but it is a nice win in that it sends a message to the league and maybe to themselves that these are the types of games you have to win if you want to be the No. 1 seed in the East for the playoffs.
Likes
George Hill hit a big 3-pointer in
Wednesday's win at New Orleans
1) This isn't a big shock or anything like that, but in the first two games two different players hit big 3-pointers to give the Pacers a boost. In the opener Tuesday night, you had Paul George hit a 3-pointer to end the third quarter that essentially put the Pacers in a comfort zone for the rest of the game on the way to winning. Then it was George Hill's turn Wednesday night when he turned a one-point lead into a four-point lead with 31 seconds to go. It's a good reminder that it's OK for the point guard to shoot when he is open, too.
2) It was good to see George and David West step up and confidently hit free throws in the final minute. I remember there was a time when George was at the line in those situations and there was some doubt if he would hit both of those or not. But there no doubt both times that he went to the line late, making all four of his free throws then. Likewise for West who hit four big free throws down the stretch, including two that gave the Pacers a one-point lead with 1:06 to go.
3) It was nice to have Luis Scola throw the ball inbounds in that final minute too. While West is a good passer in the flow of an offense during the game, there were times last year where his in bounds passes late in games were adventurous to say the least. In one situation, Scola couldn't get the ball in bounds, so he used a final timeout. Not the first choice, but a better choice than throwing a bad pass and giving new life to the Pelicans in a three-point game.
DISLIKES
1) The Pacers can't have many 36-point halves and expect to win. Sure they rallied in the second half, and while they gladly hang their hat on defense, against better teams that's going to be tough to overcome.
2) I'm not ready to set off an alarm here, but after supplying 26 points in the opening night win over Orlando, the Pacers bench scored just 10 points Wednesday night and that was with Ian Mahinmi playing 24 minutes with Hibbert in foul trouble much of the night.
SECOND GUESSES
Not much to second guess this time. I was a little concerned when Hibbert came out of the game on one of the Pelicans' final possessions when the Pacers were on defense, but it turned out to be a good move because the Pelicans had a smaller 3-point shooting lineup in and it was a two-possession game at the time where getting one blocked shot or one rebound would not be the difference between winning and losing.
NEXT UP
The Pacers are off until they host Cleveland in a 7 p.m. game Saturday. The Cavaliers could be one of

the league's most improved teams this year with No. 1 pick Anthony Bennett, former No. 1 pick Kyrie Irving and then if he ever plays, center Andrew Bynum. But the point is, they won't be a pushover when they visit Banker's Life Fieldhouse.

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Intro and only 81 of these things left

I've been an Indiana Pacers fan for pretty much all 50 years of my life. And even though I haven't lived in Indiana for quite some time, I'm still a devoted fan thanks to the NBA League Pass where I watch almost all the games. I've always loved writing about the Pacers through good times and bad and since these will hopefully be considered some good times, I thought why not do what everybody else is doing and start a blog about something you love to write about..
   Certainly, this will evolve over time, but I hope to comment on almost all the games this season with some likes, dislikes and maybe even second guesses, even though I'm a big Frank Vogel fan as I live about an hour from his hometown.
    So, it was nice to start the season with an expected win, 97-87 over visiting Orlando. 1-0 and here we go.
Overall impression
   This wasn't one of the best games you'll ever watch and while the Pacers were sluggish, especially in that second quarter and trailed 45-40 at the half, their shooting was much better in the second half and their defense picked up as well, things that go hand in hand with this team. So, while it ended up a 10-point game, there was no real suspense at the end.
Likes
   1) It was good to see Roy Hibbert smiling on the bench in the final seconds of the game. He left late in the fourth quarter with a knee injury and there was some obvious concern. He didn't bang knees with anyone and came down kind of awkwardly on it, but that relaxed look on his face at the end of the game tells me Hibbert doesn't think the injury is anything serious and Vogel said Hibbert will play tonight at New Orleans.
Pacers center Roy Hibbert had 16 rebounds in Tuesday's opener.
   2) It's been good see some little improvements in some of the players. David West appears to be a bit lighter and more nimble on his feet. West is tough enough and smart enough and know hows to play without being the fastest or quickest guy on the court. But if he can be just a bit more mobile, that will help him and the team, especially defensively. Also, it appears that reserve guard Orlando Johnson has worked on his shot in the off-season. I'm not predicting he'll turn into a Reggie Miller or even Paul George type of shooter, but if he can make the defense respect his outside shot, that will make the Pacers bench even better. Lastly here, Luis Scola isn't as fast and probably not as feisty as the departed Tyler Hansbrough was, but he certainly understands the little things about the game and he looks really relaxed shooting that 16 to 18 foot jumper, which will be nice to have throughout the season.
Dislikes
   This was a bit of a problem last season and it was apparent again even in the opener. The Pacers are not going to be mistaken for being one of the best passing teams in the league. Sometimes there are passes thrown toward the post, to either West, Hibbert or even backup center Ian Mahinmi, and you just wonder what the passer was thinking. Sometimes the post-up player can give a better target, too. It's an area you know the coaches will work on and emphasize throughout the season, so hopefully it will get better.
Second Guesses
   The big one tonight is for Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn. After Andrew Nicholson scored 18 points in the first half, he didn't see the floor again until the start of the fourth quarter. If you're a team trying to find its way early in the season and you've got someone showing a bit of leadership in the performance area, don't you have get him  back in the game a little sooner?
The Next Game
    Tonight the Pacers will be the first team to play the
New Orleans team named the Pelicans. It will be in New Orleans, so you know, being the road team in home openers can be difficult. If the Pacers can scrape out an ugly win, that would be perfectly acceptable at this early stage of the season, as there are 81 more of these things to go.