There is some good stuff in this article
http://www.nba.com/pacers/news/notebook_071022.html
NOTEBOOK: MONDAY, OCT. 22
Granger looking for comfort zone
Caught in the Web: Hoiberg making smooth transition to front office
Pacers Preseason Central
By Conrad Brunner | Oct. 22, 2007
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The 2-for-12 performance in the first preseason game could be chalked up to half-blindness, given Danny Granger was poked in the left eye and suffered blurred vision.
It's the 20-for-60 thereafter that begs explanation.
Though he isn't the only player to struggle in his initial adjustment to Coach Jim O'Brien's more free-flowing offensive system, Granger is the most obvious because of his importance to the team. He averaged 13.9 points in his second NBA season and is expected to continue to expand his role as a scorer.
Heading into Tuesday night's preseason game in Minnesota, Granger is averaging 12.2 points but shooting 30.6 percent from the field. It appears he is not yet comfortable with when to shoot, when to drive and when to pass.
"I would not disagree with that," said O'Brien. "I think this is ready-made for Danny, frankly. I don't think Danny's the only one that doesn't completely understand our 'quick' offense, but 'quick' is something they'll be learning all year. They just need to get better and better at it. And all of our players have to understand a good shot from a bad shot. Sometimes guys think they're off when in fact they're not necessarily shooting open shots. They're trying to force the issue a little bit. They're either driving it into traffic, as is the case of say Andre Owens, or maybe taking some challenged outside shots. I think there are a couple of people that are taking challenged shots and they need to clean that up in order to be the type of people that are going to make the shots that are available.
"I couldn't be any more confident in a human being than I am in Danny or, for that matter, Troy Murphy, who is not shooting a high percentage (.364 from the field). But I know from watching them all summer how well they shoot the basketball."
It isn't likely anything mechanical with his shooting stroke; Granger is shooting a solid 35 percent from the 3-point line. But he's at 28.8 percent inside the arc, indicating a problem with the quality of his attempts. It's a matter of becoming instinctive within the offense and eliminating the hesitancy that comes with too much thought.
"I'm still getting used to it," Granger said. "It's a brand-new system and we've only played six games with it. I'm still trying to adjust to it. I think I'll be alright, though. There'll definitely be a lot of opportunities. We have to make sure to realize when to take advantage of those opportunities – when they're there and when they're not going to be there. I think that's just a matter of time, learning the system and learning where everything's going to come.
"As an NBA season goes along, you know where you're going to get your shots. You know where in the offense you'll have opportunities to score. I've just got to figure out where it's at."
PACERS SHIFT INTO REGULAR-SEASON MODE
Though O'Brien had planned to use his normal regular-season rotations for the final two preseason games, Tuesday in Minnesota and Friday in Memphis, injuries will force a change in rotations, though not the plan.
O'Neal
Starting post players Troy Murphy (strained left Achilles tendon) and Jermaine O'Neal (sore left knee) will not play against the Timberwolves. Backup center David Harrison (sore right hip) will be a game-time decision, though it appears wing Kareem Rush (sore right Achilles) will be available. Because he will be serving a three-game team suspension to open the regular season, Shawne Williams will be held out of Tuesday's game, as well.
"It's the normal rotation under the circumstances," said O'Brien. "Shawne Williams can't play the first three games so he's not in the normal rotation. We're keeping Jermaine out tomorrow night and Murphy is not playing. So without Jeff (Foster) and Ike (Diogu) playing 48 minutes, if David's healthy we'll have those three guys rotating until we have foul trouble and then we'll go to Plan B."
Which is?
"Play who is healthy in exhibition season and act like it's the first game of the season and this is who you have to play with – play to win, and guys that have earned the most playing time will get the most playing time," he said. "We're trying to win both of these games."
DESPITE LOSSES, O'BRIEN PLEASED WITH PROGRESS
O'Brien
Though the Pacers have lost their last two preseason games after a 4-0 start, O'Brien said he's pleased with the progress the team has made, particularly on defense.
"I think we're making strides in every area, frankly," he said. "Despite coming out on the short end against Chicago (Saturday), we actually grew more in that game defensively than we did in the previous game against Minnesota. So I'm pleased with the progress we're making and I think October is going to pay a lot of dividends for us throughout the year."
Offensively, the Pacers are still catching up to the tempo O'Brien wants in his 'quick' scheme.
"I would like to see our 'quick' offense get initiated as the ball's coming across halfcourt," he said. "Dribbling is our enemy and passing is our friend. I think we're doing too much dribbling, and everybody is guilty of that on the perimeter. If there's too much dribbling, people tend to stand."
http://www.nba.com/pacers/news/notebook_071022.html
NOTEBOOK: MONDAY, OCT. 22
Granger looking for comfort zone
Caught in the Web: Hoiberg making smooth transition to front office
Pacers Preseason Central
By Conrad Brunner | Oct. 22, 2007
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The 2-for-12 performance in the first preseason game could be chalked up to half-blindness, given Danny Granger was poked in the left eye and suffered blurred vision.
It's the 20-for-60 thereafter that begs explanation.
Though he isn't the only player to struggle in his initial adjustment to Coach Jim O'Brien's more free-flowing offensive system, Granger is the most obvious because of his importance to the team. He averaged 13.9 points in his second NBA season and is expected to continue to expand his role as a scorer.
Heading into Tuesday night's preseason game in Minnesota, Granger is averaging 12.2 points but shooting 30.6 percent from the field. It appears he is not yet comfortable with when to shoot, when to drive and when to pass.
"I would not disagree with that," said O'Brien. "I think this is ready-made for Danny, frankly. I don't think Danny's the only one that doesn't completely understand our 'quick' offense, but 'quick' is something they'll be learning all year. They just need to get better and better at it. And all of our players have to understand a good shot from a bad shot. Sometimes guys think they're off when in fact they're not necessarily shooting open shots. They're trying to force the issue a little bit. They're either driving it into traffic, as is the case of say Andre Owens, or maybe taking some challenged outside shots. I think there are a couple of people that are taking challenged shots and they need to clean that up in order to be the type of people that are going to make the shots that are available.
"I couldn't be any more confident in a human being than I am in Danny or, for that matter, Troy Murphy, who is not shooting a high percentage (.364 from the field). But I know from watching them all summer how well they shoot the basketball."
It isn't likely anything mechanical with his shooting stroke; Granger is shooting a solid 35 percent from the 3-point line. But he's at 28.8 percent inside the arc, indicating a problem with the quality of his attempts. It's a matter of becoming instinctive within the offense and eliminating the hesitancy that comes with too much thought.
"I'm still getting used to it," Granger said. "It's a brand-new system and we've only played six games with it. I'm still trying to adjust to it. I think I'll be alright, though. There'll definitely be a lot of opportunities. We have to make sure to realize when to take advantage of those opportunities – when they're there and when they're not going to be there. I think that's just a matter of time, learning the system and learning where everything's going to come.
"As an NBA season goes along, you know where you're going to get your shots. You know where in the offense you'll have opportunities to score. I've just got to figure out where it's at."
PACERS SHIFT INTO REGULAR-SEASON MODE
Though O'Brien had planned to use his normal regular-season rotations for the final two preseason games, Tuesday in Minnesota and Friday in Memphis, injuries will force a change in rotations, though not the plan.
O'Neal
Starting post players Troy Murphy (strained left Achilles tendon) and Jermaine O'Neal (sore left knee) will not play against the Timberwolves. Backup center David Harrison (sore right hip) will be a game-time decision, though it appears wing Kareem Rush (sore right Achilles) will be available. Because he will be serving a three-game team suspension to open the regular season, Shawne Williams will be held out of Tuesday's game, as well.
"It's the normal rotation under the circumstances," said O'Brien. "Shawne Williams can't play the first three games so he's not in the normal rotation. We're keeping Jermaine out tomorrow night and Murphy is not playing. So without Jeff (Foster) and Ike (Diogu) playing 48 minutes, if David's healthy we'll have those three guys rotating until we have foul trouble and then we'll go to Plan B."
Which is?
"Play who is healthy in exhibition season and act like it's the first game of the season and this is who you have to play with – play to win, and guys that have earned the most playing time will get the most playing time," he said. "We're trying to win both of these games."
DESPITE LOSSES, O'BRIEN PLEASED WITH PROGRESS
O'Brien
Though the Pacers have lost their last two preseason games after a 4-0 start, O'Brien said he's pleased with the progress the team has made, particularly on defense.
"I think we're making strides in every area, frankly," he said. "Despite coming out on the short end against Chicago (Saturday), we actually grew more in that game defensively than we did in the previous game against Minnesota. So I'm pleased with the progress we're making and I think October is going to pay a lot of dividends for us throughout the year."
Offensively, the Pacers are still catching up to the tempo O'Brien wants in his 'quick' scheme.
"I would like to see our 'quick' offense get initiated as the ball's coming across halfcourt," he said. "Dribbling is our enemy and passing is our friend. I think we're doing too much dribbling, and everybody is guilty of that on the perimeter. If there's too much dribbling, people tend to stand."
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