Hello again Pacer nation! It is good to find some time today to write....it has been far too long. I have alot on my mind today, so let me get right to the topics at hand.
At its very core, sports are supposed to be avenues for learning life lessons. Sports are supposed to be ways to educate, to enlighten, and to bring together peoples from varied backgrounds in order to make lives better. Far from the NBA world of sponsorships, endorsements, and winning at all costs, there still remain people who look at sports in that way....as a way to build a bridge and to make the world a better place.
Our modern day Olympic games really don't provide that as much anymore, with the sponsors and influence of big money permeating the games, and with political intrigue and turmoil among superpowers always bubbling just underneath the surface.
Our modern media emphasizes the depressing and the criminal and the soap opera-esque nature of our sports heroes, giving the publicity to those who engage in dogfighting, big money hold outs, messy divorces and affairs, or other such repugnant behavior. Like life in general, what usually makes the news is the morbid, the sensational, and the controversial, where in reality great things are happening all around us in many different ways, and yet that goes unpublicized. That is a shame for all of us, and today I want to commend and comment on a great teaching moment and gumanitarian gesture, happening right in our own backyard, by a man with an office just a few blocks west of our beloved Conseco Fieldhouse.
He will probably never win an NCAA title, He probably will never coach an Olympic team, and he will probably never coach an NBA team. He probably will never be famous, have a big endorsement deal, or write a best selling book. But recently Indiana's own Ron Hunter, head coach of the IUPUI Jaguars, continued to teach his players life lessons, and provide an awesome example of how sports can help lives of those in tough unfortunate spots, by making a trip to the impoverished nation of Peru. Coach Hunter volunteers his time for a group called "Samaritan's Feet", which is a charity that provides shoes to young children in the poorest of countries all across the globe.
The article written about his trip is now on ESPN.com, written by Dana O'Neil. Those of you who are good at such things can probably provide a link, since I'm too computer illiterate to do so.
It is the great teaching moments that Hunter provides to his players and staff on this trip for charity that touch me so, and which tell me that Ron Hunter truly understands what being a teacher and a coach is all about. At their core, sports is about something bigger than winning and losing, instead they should be about trying to push your limits, and to be the very best athlete and person that you can become. In a profession that is rife with egomaniacs, big money endorsement deals, network television committments, and glad handing fat cat boosters, Ron Hunter from Indianapolis is a shining light among the darkness that sometimes sports news becomes.
I hope the Pacers somehow honor Ron Hunter this season for his great acheivements, but even more than that I hope Jim Morris and the Simon's can help him and his chosen charity provide the 10 million in shoes for children worldwide they have as a goal. Perhaps we should allow the IUPUI Jaguars to use Conseco Fieldhouse for a game to help raise money.....there are a million different ways the Pacers could help Coach Hunter with this.
Not to go off on a tangent here, but what if Shawne Williams had had an influence in his life at the college level like Ron Hunter, instead of the shyster/slickster John Calipari? Shawne Williams or Jamal Tinsley, need to grow up? Maybe a trip to the jungles of South America might give you a different perspective on things.
Coach Ron Hunter of IUPUI, kudos to you for being the type of teacher, coach, and man that we all want our sports figures to be.
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Speaking of Jamal Tinsley, it looks like it continues to be difficult for the Pacers to find a quality "fit" for him as a trade partner. Some teams that may have mild interest seemingly arent a match in what they have in return to trade us back....as I am sure the Pacers do not want a longer or more expensive contract in return.
Tinsley in purgatory is crippling us in making other moves too, since we don't have any idea of how our financial picture looks in terms of future contract obligations. This effects how you want to structure a future signing of Danny Granger, not just in total dollars but in how you want to divide the money per year. What I mean by that is, I think if I were the Pacers I wouldn't want to sign Granger to a traditional contract that begins slightly lower with maximum raises every year. I think if I am David Morway or Larry Bird I'd want to either make Granger's contract a "flat amount" (same amount every year, no raises) or even do like the Bulls did with some of their deals and "frontload" Grangers deal to pay him a DESCENDING amount of money for the 5 years. For instance, A Granger deal could look something like this, assuming for a moment a 5 yr, 60 Million deal or so.
Year 1: 16 million
Year 2: 14 million
Year 3: 12 million
Year 4: 10 million
Year 5: 8 million
This type of structure could fit our needs better long term, as we'd have more money to play with as our overall team got better and we got closer to a championship level, requiring more money each year to stay competitive in the marketplace for signing new players to add to the roster.
This type of manueverabilty makes it imperative to have Tinsley's situation resolved before we try anything as outside the box as this.
I'm not saying the Pacers have this plan or one similar in mind, but regardless, you need cost certainty in your future moves, so waiting to resolve Tinsley before you do anything else only makes sense. Unfortunately, it puts us in limbo land until every other available point guard ends up someplace, so we can see what team got caught without a seat when the music stops.
Like I said, I don't see a direct trade partner that makes sense. I think moving Jamal Tinsley basically is going to have to include a 3rd, 4th, or even a 5th team, and will likely involve multiple players and moving parts. Fortunately, there are still teams out there with players they want to get rid of somehow, and there are teams who might want Tinsley in the right circumstances. They just dont all match up with us. Here is a partial list of teams with players who might be involved off the top of my head:
Pheonix could move Boris Diaw.
New York could move Jered Jeffries, Jerome James, Zach Randolph, or Marbury.
Milwaukee could move Mo Williams or Charlie Villanueva.
Golden State could move Al Harrington.
Miami could move Mark Blount or Marcus Banks.
Chicago could move Kirk Hinrich or Ben Gordon.
Denver might move Linus Kleiza or Kenyon Martin.
There are other teams out there who might like Jamal Tinsley, as unbelievable as that is to me personally: Houston I think is a possibility now that Rafer Alston has some issues. Oklahoma City might do something involving Tinsley if it were beneficial to them financially. Detroit wouldnt take Jamal, but they'd be willing to get involved in a bigger deal I bet. Charlotte might roll the dice with someone who gets along with Larry Brown better than what they have chemistry wise.
Regardless, the point is I believe looking for a direct deal involving Jamal Tinsley is unlikely now. We probably need to be thinking in terms of a multiple team trade.
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Team USA is rolling so far in China, but I see storm clouds up ahead. Everyone can see the lack of perimeter shooting and size as problems easy enough, but I see another issue looming as a bigger weakness: Lack of patience on both ends of the floor.
The game plan to beat us is easy to figure out. Slow the game down. Throw the ball inside to attack us inside out. Spread the floor and shoot from the outside. Run the screen/roll. Make it a half court game whenever possible. Play zone against us and make us shoot from the outside. Foul us and allow no dunks, make us make foul shots. Play physical, attack our lack of defensive rebounding size.
Where I really am worried about us though is in the area of the game that is geting great praise from all the other analysts so far, and that is our pressure defense. True, we are really attacking the ballhandlers of the opponent very well so far, wearing them down and creating easy offensive chances of of turnovers.
But this defensive philosophy also lends itself to a lack of DEFENSIVE patience. Are we willing and able to defend complex offensive schemes when we have to guard longer than 20 seconds consistently? Will we not break down and go for reckless gambles, leaving us open to being backcut to death? Can we stay disciplined enough not to foul if we have to guard against a 5 -7 pass possession, giving up easy points from the line?
Coach K's Duke teams often play with a lack of patience defensively, and the elite teams they play make them pay for it. By trying to assert such intense pressure, they allow themselves to be vulnerable to being beaten off the dribble, and to giving up "penetrate and pitch" opportunities for three point shots. Even the Chinese, a basically bad team, had success doing this for spurts.
I hope the USA wins no question, and Ive enjoyed the excellent athleticism Ive witnessed so far, but we are far from perfect as a team. Can we change gears and play a different way if we need to win a game in some other way? Can we win a slower paced game if need be? Can we ever make some threes to beat a team playing zone? Can Coach K adjust to the opponent quickly enough when our initial gameplan doesnt work? If we play a team who only turns it over less than 15 times against us, can we beat them anyway? Can we guard a sophisticated team with multiple big guys in the half court well enough to win?
I love the enthusiasm and unselfishness we play with, but there are some real problems we could face before this tournament is over.
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As always, all the above is just my opinion.
Tbird
At its very core, sports are supposed to be avenues for learning life lessons. Sports are supposed to be ways to educate, to enlighten, and to bring together peoples from varied backgrounds in order to make lives better. Far from the NBA world of sponsorships, endorsements, and winning at all costs, there still remain people who look at sports in that way....as a way to build a bridge and to make the world a better place.
Our modern day Olympic games really don't provide that as much anymore, with the sponsors and influence of big money permeating the games, and with political intrigue and turmoil among superpowers always bubbling just underneath the surface.
Our modern media emphasizes the depressing and the criminal and the soap opera-esque nature of our sports heroes, giving the publicity to those who engage in dogfighting, big money hold outs, messy divorces and affairs, or other such repugnant behavior. Like life in general, what usually makes the news is the morbid, the sensational, and the controversial, where in reality great things are happening all around us in many different ways, and yet that goes unpublicized. That is a shame for all of us, and today I want to commend and comment on a great teaching moment and gumanitarian gesture, happening right in our own backyard, by a man with an office just a few blocks west of our beloved Conseco Fieldhouse.
He will probably never win an NCAA title, He probably will never coach an Olympic team, and he will probably never coach an NBA team. He probably will never be famous, have a big endorsement deal, or write a best selling book. But recently Indiana's own Ron Hunter, head coach of the IUPUI Jaguars, continued to teach his players life lessons, and provide an awesome example of how sports can help lives of those in tough unfortunate spots, by making a trip to the impoverished nation of Peru. Coach Hunter volunteers his time for a group called "Samaritan's Feet", which is a charity that provides shoes to young children in the poorest of countries all across the globe.
The article written about his trip is now on ESPN.com, written by Dana O'Neil. Those of you who are good at such things can probably provide a link, since I'm too computer illiterate to do so.
It is the great teaching moments that Hunter provides to his players and staff on this trip for charity that touch me so, and which tell me that Ron Hunter truly understands what being a teacher and a coach is all about. At their core, sports is about something bigger than winning and losing, instead they should be about trying to push your limits, and to be the very best athlete and person that you can become. In a profession that is rife with egomaniacs, big money endorsement deals, network television committments, and glad handing fat cat boosters, Ron Hunter from Indianapolis is a shining light among the darkness that sometimes sports news becomes.
I hope the Pacers somehow honor Ron Hunter this season for his great acheivements, but even more than that I hope Jim Morris and the Simon's can help him and his chosen charity provide the 10 million in shoes for children worldwide they have as a goal. Perhaps we should allow the IUPUI Jaguars to use Conseco Fieldhouse for a game to help raise money.....there are a million different ways the Pacers could help Coach Hunter with this.
Not to go off on a tangent here, but what if Shawne Williams had had an influence in his life at the college level like Ron Hunter, instead of the shyster/slickster John Calipari? Shawne Williams or Jamal Tinsley, need to grow up? Maybe a trip to the jungles of South America might give you a different perspective on things.
Coach Ron Hunter of IUPUI, kudos to you for being the type of teacher, coach, and man that we all want our sports figures to be.
.................................................. ..................................................
Speaking of Jamal Tinsley, it looks like it continues to be difficult for the Pacers to find a quality "fit" for him as a trade partner. Some teams that may have mild interest seemingly arent a match in what they have in return to trade us back....as I am sure the Pacers do not want a longer or more expensive contract in return.
Tinsley in purgatory is crippling us in making other moves too, since we don't have any idea of how our financial picture looks in terms of future contract obligations. This effects how you want to structure a future signing of Danny Granger, not just in total dollars but in how you want to divide the money per year. What I mean by that is, I think if I were the Pacers I wouldn't want to sign Granger to a traditional contract that begins slightly lower with maximum raises every year. I think if I am David Morway or Larry Bird I'd want to either make Granger's contract a "flat amount" (same amount every year, no raises) or even do like the Bulls did with some of their deals and "frontload" Grangers deal to pay him a DESCENDING amount of money for the 5 years. For instance, A Granger deal could look something like this, assuming for a moment a 5 yr, 60 Million deal or so.
Year 1: 16 million
Year 2: 14 million
Year 3: 12 million
Year 4: 10 million
Year 5: 8 million
This type of structure could fit our needs better long term, as we'd have more money to play with as our overall team got better and we got closer to a championship level, requiring more money each year to stay competitive in the marketplace for signing new players to add to the roster.
This type of manueverabilty makes it imperative to have Tinsley's situation resolved before we try anything as outside the box as this.
I'm not saying the Pacers have this plan or one similar in mind, but regardless, you need cost certainty in your future moves, so waiting to resolve Tinsley before you do anything else only makes sense. Unfortunately, it puts us in limbo land until every other available point guard ends up someplace, so we can see what team got caught without a seat when the music stops.
Like I said, I don't see a direct trade partner that makes sense. I think moving Jamal Tinsley basically is going to have to include a 3rd, 4th, or even a 5th team, and will likely involve multiple players and moving parts. Fortunately, there are still teams out there with players they want to get rid of somehow, and there are teams who might want Tinsley in the right circumstances. They just dont all match up with us. Here is a partial list of teams with players who might be involved off the top of my head:
Pheonix could move Boris Diaw.
New York could move Jered Jeffries, Jerome James, Zach Randolph, or Marbury.
Milwaukee could move Mo Williams or Charlie Villanueva.
Golden State could move Al Harrington.
Miami could move Mark Blount or Marcus Banks.
Chicago could move Kirk Hinrich or Ben Gordon.
Denver might move Linus Kleiza or Kenyon Martin.
There are other teams out there who might like Jamal Tinsley, as unbelievable as that is to me personally: Houston I think is a possibility now that Rafer Alston has some issues. Oklahoma City might do something involving Tinsley if it were beneficial to them financially. Detroit wouldnt take Jamal, but they'd be willing to get involved in a bigger deal I bet. Charlotte might roll the dice with someone who gets along with Larry Brown better than what they have chemistry wise.
Regardless, the point is I believe looking for a direct deal involving Jamal Tinsley is unlikely now. We probably need to be thinking in terms of a multiple team trade.
.................................................. .................................................. .
Team USA is rolling so far in China, but I see storm clouds up ahead. Everyone can see the lack of perimeter shooting and size as problems easy enough, but I see another issue looming as a bigger weakness: Lack of patience on both ends of the floor.
The game plan to beat us is easy to figure out. Slow the game down. Throw the ball inside to attack us inside out. Spread the floor and shoot from the outside. Run the screen/roll. Make it a half court game whenever possible. Play zone against us and make us shoot from the outside. Foul us and allow no dunks, make us make foul shots. Play physical, attack our lack of defensive rebounding size.
Where I really am worried about us though is in the area of the game that is geting great praise from all the other analysts so far, and that is our pressure defense. True, we are really attacking the ballhandlers of the opponent very well so far, wearing them down and creating easy offensive chances of of turnovers.
But this defensive philosophy also lends itself to a lack of DEFENSIVE patience. Are we willing and able to defend complex offensive schemes when we have to guard longer than 20 seconds consistently? Will we not break down and go for reckless gambles, leaving us open to being backcut to death? Can we stay disciplined enough not to foul if we have to guard against a 5 -7 pass possession, giving up easy points from the line?
Coach K's Duke teams often play with a lack of patience defensively, and the elite teams they play make them pay for it. By trying to assert such intense pressure, they allow themselves to be vulnerable to being beaten off the dribble, and to giving up "penetrate and pitch" opportunities for three point shots. Even the Chinese, a basically bad team, had success doing this for spurts.
I hope the USA wins no question, and Ive enjoyed the excellent athleticism Ive witnessed so far, but we are far from perfect as a team. Can we change gears and play a different way if we need to win a game in some other way? Can we win a slower paced game if need be? Can we ever make some threes to beat a team playing zone? Can Coach K adjust to the opponent quickly enough when our initial gameplan doesnt work? If we play a team who only turns it over less than 15 times against us, can we beat them anyway? Can we guard a sophisticated team with multiple big guys in the half court well enough to win?
I love the enthusiasm and unselfishness we play with, but there are some real problems we could face before this tournament is over.
.................................................. .................................................. .
As always, all the above is just my opinion.
Tbird
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