This was posted by a regular over on the Pacers' board on realgm. It's well-written, even-handed and insightful. And a quick read as well. Enjoy.
It is time for us as Pacers fans to wake up from our dreams of an NBA championship and realize that without Ron Artest, we are not a good basketball team. We may not even get out of the first round without him. Since the All-Star break, we have struggled in every single game, even though we have played 4 games against bad teams and 2 games against a second-tier team, the Hornets. And both times we played the Hornets, we got blown out. If we can't consistently beat the dregs of the NBA, what will we do when we face an up-and-coming team like the Heat or the Cavaliers that has not been in the playoffs for years and will be playing its heart out?
1. Jermaine O'Neal is being asked to do too much. We don't have anyone who can be consistently relied on as his second option. Some nights Reggie is that guy, some nights it's Al, but some nights no one else shows up. Without a second option, our offense can go on long dry spells. That's what happened last year against the Celtics in the playoffs.
2. Jermaine O'Neal is taking too many jumpers and not playing effectively enough in the post on offense. In the playoffs, you need a consistent post game to wear down your opponents' big men. But Jermaine is looking a little worn out himself, probably because the burden of carrying this team on his back is a little much for him. So instead of being a banger, he is taking jumpers, and so his shooting percentage is way too low for a superstar power forward.
3. We have no effective scorer off the bench. Without Artest, Al becomes a starter, but Al is the only one who has shown he is capable of putting up 15 points off the bench on any given night. Our second unit right now is horrible at scoring. Our best bench scorers right now are Jonathan Bender and Fred Jones and Austin Croshere. That is just not good enough to succeed in the playoffs.
4. Jonathan Bender is still not ready to be an important part of our rotation. I know it's exciting to see him play after all this time, and he is showing flashes of stardom. Even his defense and his post game have improved. But he is also showing flashes of scrub-dom. At times he is a foul machine, a turnover machine, and a bricklayer all at once. You don't want to rely on that kind of inconsistent player in the playoffs, especially when you have a stubborn coach who won't change the rotation if a player is playing like crap.
5. Al Harrington is not good enough to be a starter in the NBA. I've seen enough of this guy to determine that he is what he is, a good sixth man who gives you problems if he's starting for you. He can score very well at times, but he's a hopeless tweener, not quick or explosive enough to play small forward and not powerful enough to play power forward. At best he's a rich man's Maurice Taylor, and he's old enough that he won't get much better.
6. Except for Freddie Jones, our perimeter defense sucks. All year I've been saying that Anthony Johnson can't guard a turnip, and Jamaal Tinsley and Reggie Miller aren't exactly studs themselves. Even Freddie has trouble guarding taller shooting guards, although he's quick enough to stay with anyone.
7. Our post defense is still our strongest point, because Jermaine O'Neal and Jeff Foster are both pretty good at this, and so is Scot Pollard, but even our post defense isn't as good without Artest. Everyone knows Artest is the best man defender in the NBA, but he's underrated as a help defender, and he ventures into the post quite often if he needs to. Also, a key part of post defense is defensive rebounding, and we are being outrebounded even by teams like the Sixers who have horrible frontcourts. When we play strong teams like the Hornets, we get killed inside. Ron's rebounds are being sorely missed.
8. We have no heart. Ron Artest is the emotional leader of this team, and the guys feed off him and play hard. In that regard, as an emotional leader, he's like Allen Iverson and Michael Jordan, his teammates just know it's unacceptable not to be giving it their all when he's on the court. He demands that you give 100 percent. But now, we have guys coming onto the court playing lazy ball and taking three or four minutes to get into their rhythm. Jermaine and Al are guilty of this quite often. They don't have the killer instinct to put teams away as soon as possible; Ron does.
9. We are playing out of control. Our team has received at least one technical foul in every game since the All-Star break. Rick Carlisle has gotten a total of five, and our players have gotten some too. Instead of showing determination, we are standing around whining about calls. That is completely unacceptable and needs to change as soon as possible.
In summary, Ron Artest is the leader of the Indiana Pacers in too many ways to count. There are very few guys in the NBA who are able to consistently put their teams on their back and will them to victory. I mean VERY few. Jermaine O'Neal is not one of those guys, neither is Shaq, neither is Tracy McGrady, neither are a lot of great players. Ron Artest is one of them. The journey that he has taken to get here is remarkable. From his experience growing up, to his anger management problems, to all the people back home who depend on him and that he comes through for (remember how he worked at Best Buy when he joined the NBA), for him to have the success he has had, it's the American Dream. It almost brings tears to my eyes to think about it. I don't understand how anyone can't like this kid. Guys like him are the reason I'm a sports fan, that's the truth.
Ron Artest is SOOO important to our team that without him, we go from one of the best 3-4 teams in the NBA to maybe a little above average -- and I really do believe we're just a little above average right now.
So guys, let's hope Ron Artest gets better. Our season depends on it.
It is time for us as Pacers fans to wake up from our dreams of an NBA championship and realize that without Ron Artest, we are not a good basketball team. We may not even get out of the first round without him. Since the All-Star break, we have struggled in every single game, even though we have played 4 games against bad teams and 2 games against a second-tier team, the Hornets. And both times we played the Hornets, we got blown out. If we can't consistently beat the dregs of the NBA, what will we do when we face an up-and-coming team like the Heat or the Cavaliers that has not been in the playoffs for years and will be playing its heart out?
1. Jermaine O'Neal is being asked to do too much. We don't have anyone who can be consistently relied on as his second option. Some nights Reggie is that guy, some nights it's Al, but some nights no one else shows up. Without a second option, our offense can go on long dry spells. That's what happened last year against the Celtics in the playoffs.
2. Jermaine O'Neal is taking too many jumpers and not playing effectively enough in the post on offense. In the playoffs, you need a consistent post game to wear down your opponents' big men. But Jermaine is looking a little worn out himself, probably because the burden of carrying this team on his back is a little much for him. So instead of being a banger, he is taking jumpers, and so his shooting percentage is way too low for a superstar power forward.
3. We have no effective scorer off the bench. Without Artest, Al becomes a starter, but Al is the only one who has shown he is capable of putting up 15 points off the bench on any given night. Our second unit right now is horrible at scoring. Our best bench scorers right now are Jonathan Bender and Fred Jones and Austin Croshere. That is just not good enough to succeed in the playoffs.
4. Jonathan Bender is still not ready to be an important part of our rotation. I know it's exciting to see him play after all this time, and he is showing flashes of stardom. Even his defense and his post game have improved. But he is also showing flashes of scrub-dom. At times he is a foul machine, a turnover machine, and a bricklayer all at once. You don't want to rely on that kind of inconsistent player in the playoffs, especially when you have a stubborn coach who won't change the rotation if a player is playing like crap.
5. Al Harrington is not good enough to be a starter in the NBA. I've seen enough of this guy to determine that he is what he is, a good sixth man who gives you problems if he's starting for you. He can score very well at times, but he's a hopeless tweener, not quick or explosive enough to play small forward and not powerful enough to play power forward. At best he's a rich man's Maurice Taylor, and he's old enough that he won't get much better.
6. Except for Freddie Jones, our perimeter defense sucks. All year I've been saying that Anthony Johnson can't guard a turnip, and Jamaal Tinsley and Reggie Miller aren't exactly studs themselves. Even Freddie has trouble guarding taller shooting guards, although he's quick enough to stay with anyone.
7. Our post defense is still our strongest point, because Jermaine O'Neal and Jeff Foster are both pretty good at this, and so is Scot Pollard, but even our post defense isn't as good without Artest. Everyone knows Artest is the best man defender in the NBA, but he's underrated as a help defender, and he ventures into the post quite often if he needs to. Also, a key part of post defense is defensive rebounding, and we are being outrebounded even by teams like the Sixers who have horrible frontcourts. When we play strong teams like the Hornets, we get killed inside. Ron's rebounds are being sorely missed.
8. We have no heart. Ron Artest is the emotional leader of this team, and the guys feed off him and play hard. In that regard, as an emotional leader, he's like Allen Iverson and Michael Jordan, his teammates just know it's unacceptable not to be giving it their all when he's on the court. He demands that you give 100 percent. But now, we have guys coming onto the court playing lazy ball and taking three or four minutes to get into their rhythm. Jermaine and Al are guilty of this quite often. They don't have the killer instinct to put teams away as soon as possible; Ron does.
9. We are playing out of control. Our team has received at least one technical foul in every game since the All-Star break. Rick Carlisle has gotten a total of five, and our players have gotten some too. Instead of showing determination, we are standing around whining about calls. That is completely unacceptable and needs to change as soon as possible.
In summary, Ron Artest is the leader of the Indiana Pacers in too many ways to count. There are very few guys in the NBA who are able to consistently put their teams on their back and will them to victory. I mean VERY few. Jermaine O'Neal is not one of those guys, neither is Shaq, neither is Tracy McGrady, neither are a lot of great players. Ron Artest is one of them. The journey that he has taken to get here is remarkable. From his experience growing up, to his anger management problems, to all the people back home who depend on him and that he comes through for (remember how he worked at Best Buy when he joined the NBA), for him to have the success he has had, it's the American Dream. It almost brings tears to my eyes to think about it. I don't understand how anyone can't like this kid. Guys like him are the reason I'm a sports fan, that's the truth.
Ron Artest is SOOO important to our team that without him, we go from one of the best 3-4 teams in the NBA to maybe a little above average -- and I really do believe we're just a little above average right now.
So guys, let's hope Ron Artest gets better. Our season depends on it.
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