Pacers’ Jim O’Brien said he plans to tinker with the offense and play through Hibbert in the post.

agreed, they have a young team. they could be very bad, but i doubt it. i think detroit, toronto, and minny are almost locks to be top 5 worst teams. and i think indy will probably pick around 8(meaning atleast 7 worse teams).

unlike alot of people i think Hibbert can be an allstar..nobody will confuse him with Shaq,Ewing or Olajuwon..But he has a decent low post game..its kind of awkward but its effective…with the lack of true big men in league..going thru him on offense might be a good move….

my question is will Collison be able to penetrate the lane with Hibbert clogging up the middle?

 Jim O’Brian is a decent coach.  His teams will always compete and never lay down for anybody.  He teaches a great defensive philosophy and his offense is all about the 3 ball.  He must of been thinking about running his offense thru Hibbert the whole off season and decided to just go with it even after the Pacers acquired Collison.  I’m warning ya now Indiana Fans for better or worse Granger will be playing a lot of power forward this year.  

this team is definitly makin the playoffs this year..if there is no injury…they have above average center…good point guard…and 25 point scorer in Granger who doesnt dominate the ball…the least they can do is make the playoffs in the east…

 I seriously think the Pacers will get in the end of the lottery like 14th pick. Maybe playoffs, especially with Darren Collison. Why, 3-4 years before they never had a legitimate PG yet they always ended the season with the 10th or 13th worst record so just barely missing the playoffs. Now they have one, so naturally they should make the playoffs this year. But you also have to remember that Collison is a poor man’s starting PG, so they will struggle and because the East is tough this year (Amare, Lebron, Wade, Bosh, Booz are all in the East) they might this playoffs, but I guarantee next year they will make it. Do not sleep on Indy, they can surprise you. They may not have a 4, but Hansbrough can fulfill that role. I’m interested into seeing how this year will pan out for them.

 I like that plan, I think it could work also.  I think I’ll probably get some crap for this but Roy Hibbert has some simlarities in his game to Vlade Divac, no they are not identical players, but have similar size and athletic ability as well as being quality passers and outside shooters for being over 7′ feet tall.  I could see him being used in a similar way as Divac during his prime in the mid-late 90’s.

The smartest thing Jim O’Brien has said since he’s been coach.

yeah i see wat ursaying joewolf…but hibbert will be even better…and i think he will show it this year…maybe not as good as a passer but a way better scorer then vlade…they just need a couple more defenders and a year or 2 to grow and this guys will be a force to be rekon with…and collison is def legit i dont see any drop of with him…

I don’t understand why O’Brien didn’t run the offense more through Hibbert last season. Instead, he played with Hibbert’s playing time.

Hibbert needs to be more aggressive and *decisive*, but the offensive talent has always been there. I said during the summer that he’d have a big season and be in the running for the MIP award.

There’s a reason i drafted Hibbert as my fantasy center. With Troy Murphy gone, provided he can stay out of foul trouble, Hibbert should see a good increase in his overall numbers, He is one of the more polished offensive centers in the league and is a good free throw shooter for a center. He may not be an athletic freak, but he more than makes up for it with his size and length. He is very underrated and is a legit starting center in the league.

I think he will average 14.3,8.9, 2.6, 1.0 if he plays 35 minutes a game and those are pretty modest numbers….

O’Brien is the coach, the Pacers are a lottery team. With "real" coaches like Avery and BScott out there, the Pacers stuck with O’Brien. Only because Larry is a loyal (read: Homer) guy.

They need (NEED) Hibbert to be an All-Star, ’cause they don’t have an NBA-level power forward.

I hope BRush blows up when he comes off his suspension, so he becomes a tradable commodity. BRush + TJ Ford = ?

 I can’t believe how many Pacers fans are willing to ship off one of the young upstart perimeter defenders because they drafted two high profile/upside rookies, he had a real rough rookie year for being the 13th pick, but he made significant improvement last year.  I think both will be good pro players, but lets remember George and Lance haven’t played an NBA game yet and Rush is the kind of role player/ defender who I think goes pretty well with that team.

Roy is one of the best passer on the team…and one of the best passing big man in the nba….smart move by Jimmy

@JoeWolf1

I know you’re a Brandon Rush supporter since he went to Kansas and all, but he’s been somewhat disappointing with the Pacers.

He’ll probably turn out to be a good pro eventually, but I wouldn’t be upset if we shipped him out. IF we can can package him and Ford together and bring back a quality power forward, I’d be all for it.

i kinda figured mcroberts might start. They are gonna be weak at that pf spot regardless. Its too bad they have some glaring holes because both DC and granger are broderline all-stars.

im not basing things off his numbers, im basing off watching him play and the way he was the best player on the court for the hornets and was getting wherever he wanted on the court. Just watch, he will be a very good starting point along the lines of aroon brooks, devin harris, jameer nelson etc, aka borderline all-star.

 @IndianaBasketball

Yeah, i do tend to give him the benefit of the doubt, but he was a guy who I was always critical of while at Kansas.  His rookie year was pretty terrible, but I thought he made some significant improvement towards the end of last year.  I just think they need him next season because George and Lance don’t have his defensive abilities right now, and if Indiana hopes to make a run at the playoffs they need someone like him who is a little more experienced to defend the perimter.  But I hear what you’re saying too, the Pacers have a huge weakness at PF and the odds of either Lance or George being able to fill Rush’s shoes are a lot better than Psycho T or McRoberts doing anything other than fill in at power forward.

nope, it says that he wasnt all-star caliber last year. We are not talking about last year. And the hornets were about .500 with paul starting too. The hornets couldnt keep up with a very deep west last year.

dont give you what garbage, that the horents were about .500 with paul which is exactly what you posted? And why wouldnt a player going into his second year improve? DO you want me to waste time going over past players who improved to be close enough to borderline-all-stars in their second year? Keep in mind paul also had an elite backup helping him win games, dc didnt have that when he was a starter. And what does team succes have to do with being a "borderline" all-star anyways? Al jefferson, brook lopez, monta ellis, chris kaman, david lee and others didnt exactly play on title contenders in recent years and were either all-stars or worth being discussed as all-stars in recent years. If you disagree, then fine, but your arguments as to why are pretty weak. Just say you dont think he’s gonna be that good.

Roy Hibbert improved steadly last season and his better conditioning and working with Bill Walton will benefit his game. There has been no real mention of Danny Grainger who is Indy’s main offensive threat and their top player, will playing through Hibbert make him more effective I wonder?

The Pacers have never recovered from the Detroit drawl and with Miller retiring and JO having injury issues they have been downhill since. Hopefully the team having reached agreement with the city will stay put and turn their fortunes around as they were losing money and were one of the lowest average crowds in the NBA. Despite being in the lottery for a few years they haven’t really struggled enough or had the balls come up to get a very high pick. Instead they have had to develop guys drafted 11 to 15 aprox and quite a few of these are beginning to come off. Clearing cap space next summer will give Larry Bird a few options and the young core of Grainger, Collinson, George, Hibbert, Hansborough etc can continue to develop but I’d figure they will be lottery again next summer.

Granger will still be the number one option, but there’ll be an emphasis on getting the ball into Hibbert more. IF Hibbert can get it going, that’ll make it easier for Granger on the perimeter. He’ll see even more open looks. The Pacers should have a good inside out game.

he really doesnt need to improve much. As a starter he put up about 18-9 and was very solid defenisvely. If He does the same exact thing now where he will have the freedom and be a starter from day 1 and in my book he is a borderline all-star already. Maybe we are not seeing eye to eye on what constitutes a "borderline all-star". Ill repeat the names i said earlier, do you not think he can be on par with guys like aaron brooks, jameer nelson and devin harris? Becasue those guys are defenitions of what i consider a borderline all-star. If you dont think he is gonna be on their level, then all we can do is wait and see i guess.

I always liked Collison as a back up…but as a starter IDK…I can see him get a good 15 and 8 to assists…that might be alright in Indy but not all star level…If DC is a borderline all star to you then is Holiday a borderline top 10 PG??? Holiday was way better than Collison when he was given time…I’m I missing something here??? Holiday is way better than DC, so is Holiday a borderline All star too…

i like holidays future more then dc’s, but he was not better then dc last year and im not sure he will be better next year either. They both can become all-star caliber points but collison is ahead of the curve. And let me repeat again, i do NOT think collison will be an all-star next year.

Collison had a good year but he really needs to cut down on the turnovers, too.

that sounds like the right thing to say.

only thing is, danny granger is still on the team, who has the ball in his hands a lot.

this team is going to need some time to mesh. im not sure dg has played with a pg, who has the potential collison does, and now the offense is going to run thru hibbert?

so both teams, ill repeat again, you do not think brook lopez, al jefferson, monta ellis among others were ever borderline all-stars either then based on your team wasnt very good logic? In fact that means daivd west must not have been very good either too right?And mike james was a vet who had been in the league a while and had 1 breakout year. You are gonna compare that to a guy who does it as a rookie in his very first year?

it should also be noted both teams that i agree putting up stats on a sub par team does not neccesarily equal being an all-star caliber player, thus why i dont think mike james was ever an all-star type. But that goes back to oneof my first posts where i said im not basing DC just on stats, im basing off wathcing him play. If you dont think he will be a borderline all-star caliber player, then fine. But constantly bringing up stats while on a bad team without addressing any of the names i have mentioned of guys who are considered bordeline all-stars while on bad teams is just kinda pointless and gonna keep us going back and forth in circles.

Boarderline allstar is just the wrong thing to say, you shouldve said has shown glimses of allstar potential, and I agree. Although he played in a system that depends on a PG to succeed and is ran through the PG he seemed to adapt to starting and found a way to succeed and help his team. He showed good PG skills and was ultimately labelled as a steal within the draft. As he takes his skills over to Indiana the Pacers organization has high expectations for him, and are giving him all the oppurtunity to succeed and oneday become an elite player in this league. They are even changing the style of their offense to benefit him. This shows me that they are doing everything in their power to make him progress and reach his potential. It is not a stretch to say he puts up "boarderline allstar NUMBERS" this year, although as we all know it is pretty much impossible for a PG on a losing team to be nominated an allstar which is why he should never be compared to one. It is like Al Jefferson…good players on bad teams rarely get allstar apperances.

well i guess thats where we disagree on what makes a borderline all-star. In my opinon, lots of guys are borderline all-stars meaning they wont make the team but are on the verge. I have pointed out a bunch of examples already like jameer nelson and aaron brooks and devin harris and i think next year he will be right on par with those guys. And i also think al jefferson is a borderline all-star regardless if he has never been on a good team. I think rudy gay is a borderline all-star too and iggy as well and monta ellis as well. I guess itc omes down to what your defenition of a "borderline all-star" is.

Im agreeing with you LL just not youre choice of words.

I’m a big UCLA guy…I love Holiday,Collison,Westbrook,Affalo,Mbah Moute,Love,Barnes,Farmer and any other Bruin I might be leaving out…But DC was not border line All Star last year and its hard to see him be borderline All Star in Indiana this year…I’d say he’s going to be a solid near double double pG..14 ppg and 9 assist sounds very nice for a 2nd year guy who people pegged as a backup…to be honest I see him and Holiday both having great carrers and may even be around longer than Westbrook and Love ( Love looks like he can be injured if he doesn’t lose some weight and Westbrook plays so high octaine that he’s bound to face a few injuries too )

But I See them all having huge roles on good Teams…Love will not be a T’Wolve for very long and the Pacers will become a decent team in 2 years after another lottery pick and Free Agency…

e can be a winning Pg, hit big shots, play great d and lead by example…but he’s not an All Star Level PG in the NBA…he has enough talent to put up numbers but so did Fisher…If he was taking a majority of shots on an average Team he’d have put up numbers close to those of Collison…

Collison is a Championship style PG…Team First, Great D, Can hit the big shot and just plays his role on the Team…

thats another thing, i never said he was a borderline all-star last year. SO we all agree on that part. I am predicting he will get better and improve now that he has his own team and the numbers we saw with him as a starter for NO will be common now at indiana. I predict maybe 16-18ppg with about 8-9 apg. Plus above average defense.