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The Rules of Pacers Digest

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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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NBADraft.net Draft Preview: Small Forwards

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  • NBADraft.net Draft Preview: Small Forwards

    ...plus some updates on Farmar, Redick, Douby, Gray, and Saer Sene.

    http://www.nbadraft.net/draftbuzz061.asp

    NBA Draft Preview: Small Forwards

    By Aran Smith
    6/16/06
    Draft Buzz

    This draft buzz focuses on the top small forwards available for the draft.

    Adam Morrison
    Photo: Ted S. Warren
    1. Adam Morrison 6-8 220 SG/SF Gonzaga Jr. -- Morrison brings a level of intensity that few can match. Those who want to compare him to Wally Szczerbiak should keep in mind that Morrison has a much greater killer instinct than the average high level college scorer. His fire and desire will carry him in the league and make him a go to player in close games. He may have defensive and foot speed shortcomings, but his scoring ability and desire to be great will make him an excellent pro. Morrison has a good shot to be the best player in this year's draft. Look for a team to make an offer that Toronto can't refuse to move up for him at 1.

    2. Rudy Gay 6-8 220 SF UConn So. -- Gay has fallen out of favor after failing to live up to expectations and disappearing on a national stage in the tournament. Some have questioned his intensity and desire after such a lackluster season. At 19 years of age, he appeared overwhelmed with the task of carrying UConn to a national championship. But with such incredible athleticism, he has more potential than any player in this year's draft. Will Rudy's game come out of the closet?

    3. Rodney Carney 6-7 205 SG/SF Memphis Sr. -- Carney is not much different than Gay athletically. He is smaller but brings the same type of freakish athletic ability. The knocks against him are intensity and skill level, but he stepped up with some big performances in big games this season. His mom was a world class track athlete, and Carney has the stuff to stand out on the NBA level. His improved outside shooting forces opponents to play him close which allows him to get by them to the basket. Houston would like to add an athletic wing player making Carney a possible choice for them.

    4. Shawne Williams 6-9 225 SF Memphis Fr. -- Williams has a great package of size, athleticism and skills. He made the decision to stay in the draft and based on the level of interest from teams, should find a spot in the mid to late first round. Williams hit a wall in mid-season shooting the ball, and will need to add better consistency. For now, he's a player that teams can look to for ball handling, passing, and primarily defense from the SF position. He probably would have benefited by returning to Memphis for another year of seasoning, but adds depth to the first round as a potential pick.

    5. PJ Tucker 6-5 220 SG/SF Texas Jr. -- Tucker was unable to play in the NBA predraft camp after his physical revealed a strained groin. The injury isn't thought to be serious, and the fact that he was willing to participate in Orlando is a positive. He is extremely physical, brings a high level of intensity, but he must improve upon his range shooting the ball. Tucker really went at JJ Redick despite Texas' blowout loss to Duke early in the year showing a real nastiness. Scouts feel Tucker has a good shot to sneak into the late first round.

    6. Marcus Vinicius 6-9 220 SF Brazil 1984 -- Despite not having played the past season, international scouts are familiar with Marquinos game after he played in Italy before returning to Brazil last season. He has developed a soft reputation but brings great shooting ability and has a much stronger 230 pound body, up from under 200 pounds from a year ago. And while he has gained power, he has sacrificed some of his quickness off the dribble.

    7. Louis Amundson 6-8 225 SF UNLV Sr. -- Amundson had one of the best Orlando predraft camps of anyone showing a great intensity level and an improved shooting touch. He still lacks great offensive skills, but he plays with a high level of energy and athleticism. Look for his to find a spot in the early second round with an outside shot to sneak into the end of the first.

    8. Steve Novak 6-10 220 SF Marquette Sr. -- Novak brings an attribute to the table that few others can match with his tremendous shooting ability. The NBA as the say always needs shooters, and Novak is on an elite level. Unfortunately his ability to create shots for himself is very poor due to his lack of athleticism and foot speed. Regardless, Novak is a bubble first rounder who will spread the floor and do well in the right situation.

    9. Renaldo Balkman 6-8 208 SF South Carolina Jr. -- Like Amundson, Balkman impressed at the predraft camp. His athleticism and energy stood out from the pack. Despite that, he lacks consistency and has a number of holes to his game. Balkman should find a spot in the mid second round with a shot at the early second round due to his predraft camp performance.

    10a. Hassan Adams 6-4 210 SF Arizona Sr. -- Adams refusal to play in the predraft camp could hurt him some. He didn't have a tremendous season so playing well in Orlando would have been a good opportunity to boost his stock. Adams athleticism gives him some intrigue, but based on the interest level from teams, it appears he will be selected in the early to mid second round of the draft.

    10b. Brandon Bowman 6-8 219 SF Georgetown Sr. -- His athleticism stood out in Orlando, however he appears to be one of those players that's more comfortable in a complimentary role. Bowman has a nice set of skills and a great body and athletic ability. He should find a spot in the mid second round area.

    Others:

    Nemanja Aleksandrov 6-10 210 SF Serbia 1987 | Nik Caner-Medley 6-8 240 SF Maryland Sr. | Ivan Chiriaev 7-0 220 SF Russia 1984 | Chuck Davis 6-7 230 SF Alabama Sr. | Lior Eliahu 6-9 225 SF/PF Israel 1985 | Tedric Hill 6-9 220 SF (Gulf Coast CC) So. | Damir Markota 6-10 225 SF Cro. 1985 | Antywane Robinson 6-8 210 SF Temple Sr. | Matias Sandes 6-8 190 SF Arg. 1984 | Marcus Slaughter 6-8 225 SF SD St. Jr. | Steven Smith 6-8 225 SF LaSalle Sr. | Curtis Withers 6-8 230 SF/PF Charlotte Sr.


    UCLA point guard Jordan Farmar who impressed at the NBA predraft camp is still undecided about entering the draft. He would like a promise in the first round, which hasn't come. Farmar has not held any workouts for teams since the camp.

    Ben Howland and the powers that be at UCLA are lobbying hard to get Farmar to return to Westwood for another season, as the team would have a good chance at once again making a run at a National Championship.

    However, this is not a surefire win/win situation for Farmar. Even with a strong season, if Farmar fails to improve, or aspects of his game get exposed, he runs the risk of seeing his stock fall out of the first round next season.

    The time could be right for Farmar, as teams consider him a lock for the first round, and he's said to have a safety net as New Jersey would take him at 22 or 23 if he fell to them.

    On the flip side, a huge season in which Farmar showed improvement in all aspects could vault him into the lottery.

    But with the draft, nothing is a sure thing, so making the right decision is often a gamble.

    Redick DUI/ Back Injury Fallout

    Scouts don't think the DUI that Redick was charged with this week will have a huge affect on his draft stock. After four years of playing at Duke and never having any issues, his character is not under question. However, the timing of the incident couldn't have been worse.

    Even bigger than the arrest has been his back injury causing him to miss a few key workouts for teams (Orlando, Boston and Minnesota).

    Redick is still likely to find a spot in the late lottery. Orlando at 11, Philadelphia at 13 and Utah at 14 remain the likely destinations for him, but missing workouts due to the injury (depending on the severity of it) could push him out of the lottery and into the mid first area.

    Aaron Gray Pulling Out?

    Scouts are saying that Pittsburgh junior center Aaron Gray is squarely on the bubble for the first round and hasn't gotten the promise he's seeking, which could cause him to pull out of the draft.

    He has not hired an agent and remains undecided about the draft with 2 days remaining before the June 18th withdrawal deadline.

    Gray has been linked to Chicago at 16 and New Jersey at 22/23 by contacts, but no concrete promises have been made. Gray has an intriguing combination of size and strength, but remains a project that will take a few years to contribute to a team.

    A number of scouts feel he would benefit from another year in college where he would have a chance to lead the nation in rebounding. But even returning to school and having a strong season is no guaruntee as next year's draft could be stronger.

    Saer Sene Moving Up

    Senegal bigman Saer Sene's stock is on the rise. According to contacts, Phoenix is so high on him that they may consider packaging their two picks to move up for him.

    Similar to fellow Senegalese bigman DeSagana Diop, who has done an excellent job of defending Shaq in the Finals, Sene could turn into a defensive stopper inside. Sene is a project, but his upside makes him very intriguing.

    Quincy Douby Struggling in Workouts

    Rutgers standout combo guard Quincy Douby has slipped in workouts over the past few weeks and no longer looks like a surefire first rounder. Douby has dynamic scoring ability, but lacks a great NBA body and isn't a true point guard.
    "I'll always be a part of Donnie Walsh."
    -Ron Artest, Denver Post, 12.28.05

  • #2
    Re: NBADraft.net Draft Preview: Small Forwards

    Originally posted by draftnet
    2. Rudy Gay 6-8 220 SF UConn So. -- Gay has fallen out of favor after failing to live up to expectations and disappearing on a national stage in the tournament. Some have questioned his intensity and desire after such a lackluster season. At 19 years of age, he appeared overwhelmed with the task of carrying UConn to a national championship. But with such incredible athleticism, he has more potential than any player in this year's draft. Will Rudy's game come out of the closet?


    Anyone else catch the hidden message here?

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: NBADraft.net Draft Preview: Small Forwards

      Originally posted by microwave_oven
      [/B]

      Anyone else catch the hidden message here?
      I thought that was a low blow, honestly. Making fun of peoples name = not cool.
      This space for rent.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: NBADraft.net Draft Preview: Small Forwards

        Originally posted by microwave_oven
        [/B]

        Anyone else catch the hidden message here?
        yea...that is pretty low

        ----

        if i were a team drafting, i'd have Rudy ahead of Morrison

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: NBADraft.net Draft Preview: Small Forwards

          Originally posted by REL31
          yea...that is pretty low

          ----

          if i were a team drafting, i'd have Rudy ahead of Morrison
          Hopefully that comment was made out of sorrow and you are not serious.
          STARBURY

          08 and Beyond

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