[festar35Participant]

What do you guys think of the Pacers off-season?

I like what I saw outta Turner in first summer league game, he is raw but I love his potential going forward. Ellis is an awesome acquisition and will be a nice scorer for Indiana. They still need a starting PF, but with Hibbert on the move there is money to go and get one.

C. Mahinmi/Turner – Mahinmi is nice stop-gap, I think Turner will earn minutes.
PF. Allen/? – Issue here Allen is a nice back-up not starter, but he doesn’t need the ball allowing it to stay with Hill, Ellis and PG.
SF. George/Rudez/Solo -If PG recaptures his 13-14 form he will be great, I like Rudez over Solo as he can shoot.
SG. Ellis/Miles – Great scoring combo that’ll be fun too watch.
PG. Hill/?/Young – Hill is fantastic if he stays aggressive but we need a back-up.

This team looks like a play-off contender to me as long as PG comes in as can be aggressive, if they get a decent PF to start they could be a nice 2nd round play-off team even. Cavs are the team to chase, Bulls, Heat, Hawks will be strong and I feel Indiana will mix with Wiz, Raps and Bucks in bottom half of play-offs.

[TRC1991Participant]

Worst frontcourt in the NBA. They will be worse this year than they were last year. 

[TRC1991Participant]

Worst frontcourt in the NBA. They will be worse this year than they were last year. 

[festar35Participant]

I kind of agree from on offensive stand-point, defensively they will be alright though. A big man who is a threat to score will go along way to improving this team, but stopping George, Ellis and Hill will be a challenge for any team that faces Indiana.

[festar35Participant]

I kind of agree from on offensive stand-point, defensively they will be alright though. A big man who is a threat to score will go along way to improving this team, but stopping George, Ellis and Hill will be a challenge for any team that faces Indiana.

[tblazer_NZParticipant]

 Worse than Aminu, Leonard and Plumlee? The fact that Paul George is in the frontcourt makes theirs better. 

[tblazer_NZParticipant]

 Worse than Aminu, Leonard and Plumlee? The fact that Paul George is in the frontcourt makes theirs better. 

[wonzi_bellsParticipant]

 I don’t think they’ll be alright defensively either. Their whole defensive scheme was a predicated on funneling players into Hibbert, which for all the flak that he gets, he’s still good at. There’s a reason why Mahinmi is a back-up, that guy is very foul prone and Turner’s weight as a player comes more on offense than defense and typically, it’s hard to rely on rookies to be the focal point of a defense. 

Anyways, I think it’s good that they’re transitioning right now, instead of lying to themselves and trying to keep that ECF core of Hibbert & West. I keep track of all the superstars and when they’ll become free agents and George hits the open market in 2018, which comes quicker than it looks and if they can’t have an enticing roster set by then, you put yourself in a position where he can leave. Plus, this gives them the opportunity to rebuild while seeing if George is clear of any further leg problems down the road.

 

[wonzi_bellsParticipant]

 I don’t think they’ll be alright defensively either. Their whole defensive scheme was a predicated on funneling players into Hibbert, which for all the flak that he gets, he’s still good at. There’s a reason why Mahinmi is a back-up, that guy is very foul prone and Turner’s weight as a player comes more on offense than defense and typically, it’s hard to rely on rookies to be the focal point of a defense. 

Anyways, I think it’s good that they’re transitioning right now, instead of lying to themselves and trying to keep that ECF core of Hibbert & West. I keep track of all the superstars and when they’ll become free agents and George hits the open market in 2018, which comes quicker than it looks and if they can’t have an enticing roster set by then, you put yourself in a position where he can leave. Plus, this gives them the opportunity to rebuild while seeing if George is clear of any further leg problems down the road.

 

[CoachWyersParticipant]

I could see them starting Turner, George, Miles, Ellis, Hill or at least going with that unit for long stretches. Vogel has said they want to go small and us George a lot at PF this year.

[CoachWyersParticipant]

I could see them starting Turner, George, Miles, Ellis, Hill or at least going with that unit for long stretches. Vogel has said they want to go small and us George a lot at PF this year.

[logicParticipant]

 Monte is primed maybe for his best season yet.

[logicParticipant]

 Monte is primed maybe for his best season yet.

[omphalosParticipant]

They should try to find a way to get Henson from the Bucks.

With Monroe there and Parker healthy again, Henson might be available for another shooter or a pick.

Would slot in nicely at PF and has plenty of upside left.

 

 

 

[omphalosParticipant]

They should try to find a way to get Henson from the Bucks.

With Monroe there and Parker healthy again, Henson might be available for another shooter or a pick.

Would slot in nicely at PF and has plenty of upside left.

 

 

 

[mgreener_34Participant]

 Well with this year aside because of the Paul George injury, you have to look at the main problems that Indy faced two years ago, and if they were addressed. For me their biggest issues were:

1. Their PG situation. George Hill is a decent player, but is most likely the worst player on the floor at tip off during the playoffs. Watching him just get swollowed up by the Heat in the playoffs was sad to watch (two years in a row), and he could barely even get the ball up the floor. He had a career year last year, and hopefully he can build upon that. I think having Monta on the team is only going to ease his burdon, as Monto can play on-ball a lot, and force George to play off ball where he is actually a pretty good player. 

2. Slow offense. Bird has come out an said that he wants his team to play faster, and they will do just that. Getting Ellis should help improve from their 23rd ranked offense, and George coming back will only help as well. 

3. Bench depth. This was their problem against the Heat, and is still their problem today. They need to address this sooner rather than later, and think they still have some options now that Hibbert is gone. Signing someone like Brandon Bass or Lou-Will would be awesome for them. 

I think a lineup of:

Mahimini

Turner

George-Hill

Monta-Miles

Hill

Is decent, and much better than the team they trotted out their last year…and they were still only 2 to 3 games out of the playoff race. Expect the Pacers to be back in the mix, not a contender, but if they can get a couple of solid bench players and Turner can develope, having a core of Turner/George/Ellis would be a nice start. People seem to think that losing Hibbert and West has ruined their defensive identity, but I disagree. Mahimini is a fantastic defender who can take up Roy’s 25 mpg, Turner projects as a great shot blocker, and George is all-nba defense on the perimeter with Hill being no slouch either. Pacers will win games just on the defensive end against some of these teams out East. I predict a 44-38 year for them assuming they can’t drastically improve their bench situation.

[mgreener_34Participant]

 Well with this year aside because of the Paul George injury, you have to look at the main problems that Indy faced two years ago, and if they were addressed. For me their biggest issues were:

1. Their PG situation. George Hill is a decent player, but is most likely the worst player on the floor at tip off during the playoffs. Watching him just get swollowed up by the Heat in the playoffs was sad to watch (two years in a row), and he could barely even get the ball up the floor. He had a career year last year, and hopefully he can build upon that. I think having Monta on the team is only going to ease his burdon, as Monto can play on-ball a lot, and force George to play off ball where he is actually a pretty good player. 

2. Slow offense. Bird has come out an said that he wants his team to play faster, and they will do just that. Getting Ellis should help improve from their 23rd ranked offense, and George coming back will only help as well. 

3. Bench depth. This was their problem against the Heat, and is still their problem today. They need to address this sooner rather than later, and think they still have some options now that Hibbert is gone. Signing someone like Brandon Bass or Lou-Will would be awesome for them. 

I think a lineup of:

Mahimini

Turner

George-Hill

Monta-Miles

Hill

Is decent, and much better than the team they trotted out their last year…and they were still only 2 to 3 games out of the playoff race. Expect the Pacers to be back in the mix, not a contender, but if they can get a couple of solid bench players and Turner can develope, having a core of Turner/George/Ellis would be a nice start. People seem to think that losing Hibbert and West has ruined their defensive identity, but I disagree. Mahimini is a fantastic defender who can take up Roy’s 25 mpg, Turner projects as a great shot blocker, and George is all-nba defense on the perimeter with Hill being no slouch either. Pacers will win games just on the defensive end against some of these teams out East. I predict a 44-38 year for them assuming they can’t drastically improve their bench situation.

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 I don’t follow the Pacers religiously but I would say of the non Wolves teams I root for, Pacers would be in my top 5. 

They need a big man really bad. Allen/Mahinmi are blah. Both are mediocre backups at best. I’d say if one is your 4th big and the other is your 5th you are in okay shape. They need a starting big man, don’t know who they can pursue to give them that but they’ve done a lot to solve their lack of playmakers. 

Put Stuckey and Ellis on the Pacers team two years ago and they might’ve been in the finals. It will be interesting to see how Ellis does away from Rick Carlisle because I think he’s been underrated as a coach. 

 

 

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 I don’t follow the Pacers religiously but I would say of the non Wolves teams I root for, Pacers would be in my top 5. 

They need a big man really bad. Allen/Mahinmi are blah. Both are mediocre backups at best. I’d say if one is your 4th big and the other is your 5th you are in okay shape. They need a starting big man, don’t know who they can pursue to give them that but they’ve done a lot to solve their lack of playmakers. 

Put Stuckey and Ellis on the Pacers team two years ago and they might’ve been in the finals. It will be interesting to see how Ellis does away from Rick Carlisle because I think he’s been underrated as a coach. 

 

 

[HitsterParticipant]

 The interesting thing about the Pacers is that they have overnight decided to go from being a more halfcourt based team to a run and gun type offence.

With Paul George back and hopefully to his previous form they get a 20ppg plus player who don’t forget was All defensive first team in 2014 so if he does flip to PF he could provide the defensive need there too.

Monta Ellis and George Hill will give them good scoring and now that they have moved Hibbert to the Lakers they have some cap space but FA options at the moment seem very limited.

Larry Bird appeared to almost want to dispose of Roy Hibbert ASAP once West had opted out. With the money paid to some bigs in FA, Hibbert would have had a lot of FA interest as his salary wasn’t too bad with a year left on his deal. I know Hibbert had a disappointing year last season but he hasn’t become a bad player overnight and at 28 still has good years ahead of him.

One thing the Pacers may perhaps consider is letting Kevin Pritchard try to source some deals, the guy was a major deal maker at Portland and may be able to pull off afew nice moves to add depth to the frontcourt.

The Pacers may have to endure another quiet year in 2015-16 but a fit Paul George and Monta Ellis should make them play off contenders at worse. Then in 2016 with Turner hopefully having had a decent rookie year they can look to make a run at a good frontcourt FA – the likes of Horford, Al Jefferson, Noah, Whiteside, Nene are a few names they may look at. 

 

 

 

  

 

[HitsterParticipant]

 The interesting thing about the Pacers is that they have overnight decided to go from being a more halfcourt based team to a run and gun type offence.

With Paul George back and hopefully to his previous form they get a 20ppg plus player who don’t forget was All defensive first team in 2014 so if he does flip to PF he could provide the defensive need there too.

Monta Ellis and George Hill will give them good scoring and now that they have moved Hibbert to the Lakers they have some cap space but FA options at the moment seem very limited.

Larry Bird appeared to almost want to dispose of Roy Hibbert ASAP once West had opted out. With the money paid to some bigs in FA, Hibbert would have had a lot of FA interest as his salary wasn’t too bad with a year left on his deal. I know Hibbert had a disappointing year last season but he hasn’t become a bad player overnight and at 28 still has good years ahead of him.

One thing the Pacers may perhaps consider is letting Kevin Pritchard try to source some deals, the guy was a major deal maker at Portland and may be able to pull off afew nice moves to add depth to the frontcourt.

The Pacers may have to endure another quiet year in 2015-16 but a fit Paul George and Monta Ellis should make them play off contenders at worse. Then in 2016 with Turner hopefully having had a decent rookie year they can look to make a run at a good frontcourt FA – the likes of Horford, Al Jefferson, Noah, Whiteside, Nene are a few names they may look at. 

 

 

 

  

 

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