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The Rules of Pacers Digest

Hello everyone,

Whether your are a long standing forum member or whether you have just registered today, it's a good idea to read and review the rules below so that you have a very good idea of what to expect when you come to Pacers Digest.

A quick note to new members: Your posts will not immediately show up when you make them. An administrator has to approve at least your first post before the forum software will later upgrade your account to the status of a fully-registered member. This usually happens within a couple of hours or so after your post(s) is/are approved, so you may need to be a little patient at first.

Why do we do this? So that it's more difficult for spammers (be they human or robot) to post, and so users who are banned cannot immediately re-register and start dousing people with verbal flames.

Below are the rules of Pacers Digest. After you have read them, you will have a very good sense of where we are coming from, what we expect, what we don't want to see, and how we react to things.

Rule #1

Pacers Digest is intended to be a place to discuss basketball without having to deal with the kinds of behaviors or attitudes that distract people from sticking with the discussion of the topics at hand. These unwanted distractions can come in many forms, and admittedly it can sometimes be tricky to pin down each and every kind that can rear its ugly head, but we feel that the following examples and explanations cover at least a good portion of that ground and should at least give people a pretty good idea of the kinds of things we actively discourage:

"Anyone who __________ is a liar / a fool / an idiot / a blind homer / has their head buried in the sand / a blind hater / doesn't know basketball / doesn't watch the games"

"People with intelligence will agree with me when I say that __________"

"Only stupid people think / believe / do ___________"

"I can't wait to hear something from PosterX when he/she sees that **insert a given incident or current event that will have probably upset or disappointed PosterX here**"

"He/she is just delusional"

"This thread is stupid / worthless / embarrassing"

"I'm going to take a moment to point and / laugh at PosterX / GroupOfPeopleY who thought / believed *insert though/belief here*"

"Remember when PosterX said OldCommentY that no longer looks good? "

In general, if a comment goes from purely on topic to something 'ad hominem' (personal jabs, personal shots, attacks, flames, however you want to call it, towards a person, or a group of people, or a given city/state/country of people), those are most likely going to be found intolerable.

We also dissuade passive aggressive behavior. This can be various things, but common examples include statements that are basically meant to imply someone is either stupid or otherwise incapable of holding a rational conversation. This can include (but is not limited to) laughing at someone's conclusions rather than offering an honest rebuttal, asking people what game they were watching, or another common problem is Poster X will say "that player isn't that bad" and then Poster Y will say something akin to "LOL you think that player is good". We're not going to tolerate those kinds of comments out of respect for the community at large and for the sake of trying to just have an honest conversation.

Now, does the above cover absolutely every single kind of distraction that is unwanted? Probably not, but you should by now have a good idea of the general types of things we will be discouraging. The above examples are meant to give you a good feel for / idea of what we're looking for. If something new or different than the above happens to come along and results in the same problem (that being, any other attitude or behavior that ultimately distracts from actually just discussing the topic at hand, or that is otherwise disrespectful to other posters), we can and we will take action to curb this as well, so please don't take this to mean that if you managed to technically avoid saying something exactly like one of the above examples that you are then somehow off the hook.

That all having been said, our goal is to do so in a generally kind and respectful way, and that doesn't mean the moment we see something we don't like that somebody is going to be suspended or banned, either. It just means that at the very least we will probably say something about it, quite possibly snipping out the distracting parts of the post in question while leaving alone the parts that are actually just discussing the topics, and in the event of a repeating or excessive problem, then we will start issuing infractions to try to further discourage further repeat problems, and if it just never seems to improve, then finally suspensions or bans will come into play. We would prefer it never went that far, and most of the time for most of our posters, it won't ever have to.

A slip up every once and a while is pretty normal, but, again, when it becomes repetitive or excessive, something will be done. Something occasional is probably going to be let go (within reason), but when it starts to become habitual or otherwise a pattern, odds are very good that we will step in.

There's always a small minority that like to push people's buttons and/or test their own boundaries with regards to the administrators, and in the case of someone acting like that, please be aware that this is not a court of law, but a private website run by people who are simply trying to do the right thing as they see it. If we feel that you are a special case that needs to be dealt with in an exceptional way because your behavior isn't explicitly mirroring one of our above examples of what we generally discourage, we can and we will take atypical action to prevent this from continuing if you are not cooperative with us.

Also please be aware that you will not be given a pass simply by claiming that you were 'only joking,' because quite honestly, when someone really is just joking, for one thing most people tend to pick up on the joke, including the person or group that is the target of the joke, and for another thing, in the event where an honest joke gets taken seriously and it upsets or angers someone, the person who is truly 'only joking' will quite commonly go out of his / her way to apologize and will try to mend fences. People who are dishonest about their statements being 'jokes' do not do so, and in turn that becomes a clear sign of what is really going on. It's nothing new.

In any case, quite frankly, the overall quality and health of the entire forum's community is more important than any one troublesome user will ever be, regardless of exactly how a problem is exhibiting itself, and if it comes down to us having to make a choice between you versus the greater health and happiness of the entire community, the community of this forum will win every time.

Lastly, there are also some posters, who are generally great contributors and do not otherwise cause any problems, who sometimes feel it's their place to provoke or to otherwise 'mess with' that small minority of people described in the last paragraph, and while we possibly might understand why you might feel you WANT to do something like that, the truth is we can't actually tolerate that kind of behavior from you any more than we can tolerate the behavior from them. So if we feel that you are trying to provoke those other posters into doing or saying something that will get themselves into trouble, then we will start to view you as a problem as well, because of the same reason as before: The overall health of the forum comes first, and trying to stir the pot with someone like that doesn't help, it just makes it worse. Some will simply disagree with this philosophy, but if so, then so be it because ultimately we have to do what we think is best so long as it's up to us.

If you see a problem that we haven't addressed, the best and most appropriate course for a forum member to take here is to look over to the left of the post in question. See underneath that poster's name, avatar, and other info, down where there's a little triangle with an exclamation point (!) in it? Click that. That allows you to report the post to the admins so we can definitely notice it and give it a look to see what we feel we should do about it. Beyond that, obviously it's human nature sometimes to want to speak up to the poster in question who has bothered you, but we would ask that you try to refrain from doing so because quite often what happens is two or more posters all start going back and forth about the original offending post, and suddenly the entire thread is off topic or otherwise derailed. So while the urge to police it yourself is understandable, it's best to just report it to us and let us handle it. Thank you!

All of the above is going to be subject to a case by case basis, but generally and broadly speaking, this should give everyone a pretty good idea of how things will typically / most often be handled.

Rule #2

If the actions of an administrator inspire you to make a comment, criticism, or express a concern about it, there is a wrong place and a couple of right places to do so.

The wrong place is to do so in the original thread in which the administrator took action. For example, if a post gets an infraction, or a post gets deleted, or a comment within a larger post gets clipped out, in a thread discussing Paul George, the wrong thing to do is to distract from the discussion of Paul George by adding your off topic thoughts on what the administrator did.

The right places to do so are:

A) Start a thread about the specific incident you want to talk about on the Feedback board. This way you are able to express yourself in an area that doesn't throw another thread off topic, and this way others can add their two cents as well if they wish, and additionally if there's something that needs to be said by the administrators, that is where they will respond to it.

B) Send a private message to the administrators, and they can respond to you that way.

If this is done the wrong way, those comments will be deleted, and if it's a repeating problem then it may also receive an infraction as well.

Rule #3

If a poster is bothering you, and an administrator has not or will not deal with that poster to the extent that you would prefer, you have a powerful tool at your disposal, one that has recently been upgraded and is now better than ever: The ability to ignore a user.

When you ignore a user, you will unfortunately still see some hints of their existence (nothing we can do about that), however, it does the following key things:

A) Any post they make will be completely invisible as you scroll through a thread.

B) The new addition to this feature: If someone QUOTES a user you are ignoring, you do not have to read who it was, or what that poster said, unless you go out of your way to click on a link to find out who it is and what they said.

To utilize this feature, from any page on Pacers Digest, scroll to the top of the page, look to the top right where it says 'Settings' and click that. From the settings page, look to the left side of the page where it says 'My Settings', and look down from there until you see 'Edit Ignore List' and click that. From here, it will say 'Add a Member to Your List...' Beneath that, click in the text box to the right of 'User Name', type in or copy & paste the username of the poster you are ignoring, and once their name is in the box, look over to the far right and click the 'Okay' button. All done!

Rule #4

Regarding infractions, currently they carry a value of one point each, and that point will expire in 31 days. If at any point a poster is carrying three points at the same time, that poster will be suspended until the oldest of the three points expires.

Rule #5

When you share or paste content or articles from another website, you must include the URL/link back to where you found it, who wrote it, and what website it's from. Said content will be removed if this doesn't happen.

An example:

If I copy and paste an article from the Indianapolis Star website, I would post something like this:

http://www.linktothearticlegoeshere.com/article
Title of the Article
Author's Name
Indianapolis Star

Rule #6

We cannot tolerate illegal videos on Pacers Digest. This means do not share any links to them, do not mention any websites that host them or link to them, do not describe how to find them in any way, and do not ask about them. Posts doing anything of the sort will be removed, the offenders will be contacted privately, and if the problem becomes habitual, you will be suspended, and if it still persists, you will probably be banned.

The legal means of watching or listening to NBA games are NBA League Pass Broadband (for US, or for International; both cost money) and NBA Audio League Pass (which is free). Look for them on NBA.com.

Rule #7

Provocative statements in a signature, or as an avatar, or as the 'tagline' beneath a poster's username (where it says 'Member' or 'Administrator' by default, if it is not altered) are an unwanted distraction that will more than likely be removed on sight. There can be shades of gray to this, but in general this could be something political or religious that is likely going to provoke or upset people, or otherwise something that is mean-spirited at the expense of a poster, a group of people, or a population.

It may or may not go without saying, but this goes for threads and posts as well, particularly when it's not made on the off-topic board (Market Square).

We do make exceptions if we feel the content is both innocuous and unlikely to cause social problems on the forum (such as wishing someone a Merry Christmas or a Happy Easter), and we also also make exceptions if such topics come up with regards to a sports figure (such as the Lance Stephenson situation bringing up discussions of domestic abuse and the law, or when Jason Collins came out as gay and how that lead to some discussion about gay rights).

However, once the discussion seems to be more/mostly about the political issues instead of the sports figure or his specific situation, the thread is usually closed.

Rule #8

We prefer self-restraint and/or modesty when making jokes or off topic comments in a sports discussion thread. They can be fun, but sometimes they derail or distract from a topic, and we don't want to see that happen. If we feel it is a problem, we will either delete or move those posts from the thread.

Rule #9

Generally speaking, we try to be a "PG-13" rated board, and we don't want to see sexual content or similarly suggestive content. Vulgarity is a more muddled issue, though again we prefer things to lean more towards "PG-13" than "R". If we feel things have gone too far, we will step in.

Rule #10

We like small signatures, not big signatures. The bigger the signature, the more likely it is an annoying or distracting signature.

Rule #11

Do not advertise anything without talking about it with the administrators first. This includes advertising with your signature, with your avatar, through private messaging, and/or by making a thread or post.
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We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft of t

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  • #1

    We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft of t

    Given the idea that it's a somewhat weak year for college players coming out, is this _really_ the year we get familiar with some of these names?
    ___

    These names shouldn't be foreign to you

    Sean Deveney
    Posted: 4 hours ago

    Andris Biedrins is only 17, and in many ways, it's obvious. He's sitting with his older brother, 21-year-old Uldis, at a hotel in Los Angeles during All-Star weekend in February, talking about his experiences playing professionally for Skonto Riga in his native Latvia. When it comes to Andris' success against older, tougher veterans, Uldis pipes in to take some credit: "I have been beating him up for years," Uldis says. "He's used to it."

    As for taking in the Los Angeles scene, especially during the weekend-long debauchery that accompanies All-Star festivities, Andris also was prepared for the kind of nightlife attendant with being a promising hoopster. That is, until his mother, Inita, got hold of his plans: "After the games are over," Inita says, in Latvian, "I tell him to go back to the hotel and go to bed. And he does."

    With players in the NBA draft getting increasingly younger, curfews and bullying brothers no longer are oddities for potential lottery picks -- teddy bears and story time can't be far behind. Many decry the presence of American high school kids in the draft, but the same trend toward youth has taken over internationally. It creates uncertainty. Not only is it a crapshoot to pick a teenager in June, it's a crapshoot just figuring out who will be in the draft.

    Biedrins is a rarity. He is certain he will enter the draft, and he will be a lottery pick. He's a pure power forward, a lefty with a good frame. He is 6-11, athletic and a terrific shot blocker, with a mean streak not usually seen in kids his age (one scout compares him with Kenyon Martin). He runs the floor and has a fairly polished back-to-the-basket game. He originally planned to attend a prep school in Washington, D.C., but his status as a pro in Latvia washed out those plans. When he hitched onto the DC Assault AAU team last year for the Big Time Tournament in Las Vegas, he was dominant, averaging a triple-double.

    Biedrins, who turns 18 on Friday, understands that being a lottery pick won't necessarily translate into immediate success. He has watched last year's No. 2 pick, Darko Milicic, with great care. "I have done all I can do in Latvia," Biedrins says. "Even if I don't play, I will be getting better just by practicing. I think Darko does the same."

    But after Biedrins, issues of youth and contract buyouts dominate the international scene. There will be eight to 11 international players chosen in the draft's first round, but who goes where largely will depend on which players are on the board. Some definitely are in the draft, and some will come in only if a team guarantees a certain draft slot. Others are not likely to enter but could change their minds and create a late stir.


    In for sure

    1. Andris Biedrins.

    2. Ivan Chiriaev, SF, 7-1, St. Thomas Aquinas HS (Oakville, Ontario). He's only 19 but is as good a shooter as there will be in the draft. At his size, he's likely to go in the lottery.

    3. Roko-Leni Ukic, PG, 6-5, Split (Croatia). He's the hot name among NBA G.M.s. Ukic has good size and is quick with the ball. Shooting ability is the big question.

    4. Ivan Koljevic, PG, 6-1, Buducnost (Serbia-Montenegro). He's 19 and probably the best ballhandler coming out this year. Still, he must prove he is a point guard, not a shooting guard.

    5. Sergei Monya, SF, 6-8, CSKA Moscow. Monya is NBA-ready, with a solid, wide body and athleticism. But he is raw and needs to diversify his game. His buyout could be an issue.

    6. Ha-Seung Jin, C, 7-4, Yonsei University (South Korea). He's enormous and has been working out in Los Angeles with the SFX agency. He's not very athletic and certainly is no Yao Ming, but he's a first-rounder.

    7. Sasha Vujacic, SG, 6-6, Snaidero Udine (Italy). He did not impress scouts at the Chicago predraft camp last year. He will try to play the point but is an off-guard.


    Guarantee me a spot, please

    1. Martynas Andriuskevicius, C, 7-3, Zalgiris Kaunas (Lithuania). He's only 18 but has been taken under the wing of Arvydas Sabonis, and scouts see a lot of Sabonis in Andriuskevicius' game. He needs a top 10 guarantee.

    2. Kosta Perovic, C, 7-3, Partizan Belgrade (Serbia-Montenegro). He'll be looking for a top 10 guarantee and probably will get it. Perovic is a good shooter, handles himself well in the paint and is simply huge.

    3. Damir Omerhodzic, SF, 6-10, Cibona (Croatia). Few small forward prospects are as talented, but there are rumors about his rough personality.

    4. Pavel Podkolzine, C, 7-5, Metis Varese (Italy). He wanted a lottery guarantee last year but pulled out of the draft when he could not get one. He'll get one this year.

    5. Marcelo Huertas, PG, 6-3, Paulistano (Brazil). This lightning-quick Argentinian has drawn the interest of several teams. He's more skilled than Leandro Barbosa, the Suns' Brazilian point guard.

    6. Peter John Ramos, C, 7-2, Criollos de Caguas (Puerto Rico). This former New Yorker is excelling in Puerto Rico. He's a big talent, but focus is a question. Ramos wants to be in the NBA but wants to be a first-rounder.


    Dark horses

    These players likely won't enter the draft, but remember their names, just in case:

    1. Johan Petro, C, 6-11, Pau Orthez (France).

    2. Rudy Fernandez, SG, 6-5, Joventut Badalona (Spain).

    3. Pedja Samardziski, C, 6-11, Partizan Belgrade (Serbia-Montenegro).

    4. Tiago Splitter, PF, 7-0, Tau Ceramica (Spain).

    5. Uros Slokar, PF, 6-11, Benetton Treviso (Italy).

    Sean Deveney is a staff writer for Sporting News. Email him at sdeveney@sportingnews.com.

    http://www.foxsports.com/content/view?contentId=2274968
    Mickael Pietrus Le site officiel
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft

    I hope one of these 7-3 C's drops to the end of the 1st round....

    Comment

    • #3
      Re: We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft

      I hope one of these 7-3 C's drops to the end of the 1st round....
      To spot 32, where the NBA champs Indiana Pacers will be waiting
      Don't ask Marvin Harrison what he did during the bye week. "Batman never told where the Bat Cave is," he explained.

      Comment

      • #4
        Re: We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft

        yeah, perhaps, but, we already have a 7.+ wonder on our IRL.

        If we want "talent" and "bigger" at the C, I'll repeat myself, look for another Dutchman over at the Bucks roster:

        Dan Gadzuric
        2003-04 Statistics

        68 0 17.5 177-335 .528 0-1 .000 55-114 .482 1.80 3.00 4.90 .4 .71 1.46 .62 2.60 6.0


        Ranks #13 in the NBA in Offensive Rebounds Per 48 Minutes(5.0)
        Ranks #4 in the NBA in Blocks Per 48 Minutes(3.99)

        According to Hoops Hype he is FA at the end of the season, made 560 this year.
        According to GM he is free as well.

        More then interesting pickup, great talent, size, and athletic.
        So Long And Thanks For All The Fish.

        If you've done 6 impossible things today?
        Then why not have Breakfast at Milliways!

        Comment

        • #5
          Re: We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft

          the lowest pick of the first round is actually 31, since twolves still have to forfeit a pick.

          gadz is nice, but i don't we can get him. bucks are pretty high on the guy. and we all know how rare decent big men are these days.

          Comment

          • #6
            Re: We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft

            Actually Charlotte will be the 30th NBA team.

            That's why they are going to the new divisional lineup next season.

            The Pacers will get the 29th pick because, as stated above, Minnesota gave up their pick for getting caught in the Joe Smith deal.

            It would be better to get a player & leave him overseas for at least a year.

            Ha-Seung Jin would be the guy I hope slides. It doesn't say in the info provided above, but he is listed at 325 lbs.

            Here is a link to some other info on him.

            http://www.draftcity.com/haseungjin.htm

            And a little of what they have to say.

            Thick physique with a knack for scoring. Jin weighs a surprising 325 pounds, possessing a frame that only the upper echelon of post players carry; and what's even more impressive is the fact that he may still be growing, meaning he may fill out his body and possibly put on more weight in the form of muscle to help him battle in the paint. This unique young man's number one strength would undoubtedly be his prototype height for the ever evolving NBA. With competition from players like Shaq, Yao, Illgauskas, and B. Miller, his size alone makes him an interesting prospect to say the least. Jin has good fundamentals and is still eager to learn the game. An improving stroke from beyond the paint, decent free throw shooting and a soft touch inside the post; scouts have constantly praised his shooting as a strength in his offensive game. Another thing to note would be his dedication to the game, which may be indirectly connected to his Korean heritage, commonly stereotyped as having high levels of work ethic. News sites report that this kid plays nearly 4 hours day! That is not including the time spent on bulking up his body in the weight room. This might be the best news; he is willing to work to get better.

            While his offense may be raw at this point, but unlike many foreign centers, he does not shy away from contact. Contrary to popular misconception, though, he plays nothing like Yao Ming. Jin plays more of a down-and-dirty post game like Eddy Curry/Shaquille O'neal/Zach Randolph than a finesse game like Yao Ming. It will take time for that to translate to the NBA, but the fact that he is willing to mix it up inside instead of drifting to the perimeter is another plus to his game. With his aggressiveness on offense and his natural yet unrefined talent on the court, he has all the physical tools to be very capable offensive player in this league.

            Comment

            • #7
              Re: We've seen the "Year of the High School player" is this the draft

              Well, well look who Inside Hoops has down at #30

              http://www.insidehoops.com/nba-mock-draft.shtml

              I doubt they've seen him or really know any more than anything we've read but it's intriguing...
              Mickael Pietrus Le site officiel

              Comment

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