Pacers Looking To Trade
The Indiana Pacers are not exactly frequent flyers when it comes to the top of the NBA draft. This year they own the tenth pick, and it's the first time they've had a top ten pick since Jonathan Bender, the fifth overall pick in 1999, and even he was acquired via trade with the Toronto Raptors (for Antonio Davis). They haven't actually owned a top ten pick since 1996, when they drafted Erick Dampier, a testament to the success of the franchise.
The Pacers are smack in the middle of a rebuilding project now, and they expect the tenth pick to be a significant factor for them in that process. Common wisdom has the team picking a point guard, but the Pacers are not ready to commit to a particular position. They like Avery Bradley from UT, but they also like Epke Udoh, Baylor's low post enforcer. They're also very open to moving the pick, and have had discussions with the vast majority of the other teams in the NBA to gauge what the pick might bring back in trade.
"Our focus is to get better," says Pacers GM David Morway. "That's the focus, to get better in all facets. There's no question that we are looking for a point guard who can be part of the core of this franchise moving forward, but we also have other areas that we need to improve to become the type of team we want to be moving forward."
One of the primary goals of the Pacers since team president Larry Bird and Morway came together to rebuild the team has been to create cap flexibility and avoid players with long-term contracts who don't directly address the team's goal of returning to the playoffs. They have carefully cleared out the majority of their contracts that extended beyond next season, with only Danny Granger and Dahntay Jones currently guaranteed beyond that. Still, if they can land a franchise piece between now and then they won't hesitate to use some of that cap space now.
"Our plan from the outset was to create cap flexibility, to create the kind of flexibility that would allow us to make intelligent basketball decisions in terms of adding players who can help us win," says Morway. "If we have the ability during this draft period or during the summer, where we can add a player that Larry and Coach (Jim) O'Brien and I believe can be a part of this core and the future of the franchise and it eats up some of our cap flexibility next year, we would be more than willing to look at that."
Last night the Los Angeles Lakers win their 16th NBA championship, and the cost was a cool $40 million in luxury tax. It is, indeed, a luxury for a team in the LA market to stay profitable despite such an outrageous tax bill, and it's a luxury a small market team like the Pacers can't afford.
"Our responsibility is to put the best product on the floor to try and win an NBA championship," explains Morway. "Our ownership is terrific, and there's never been a question that when it came to winning that Mr. (Herb) Simon would spend the money to win. I think Larry and I have always looked at our responsibility as being to put the best product on the floor and stay under the luxury tax. At times that can be difficult, but that's our goal and we believe we can put a winning product on the floor doing that, but it is a challenge for small market teams. No question about it. We cannot afford to go over the luxury tax and pay the dollar-for-dollar tax and in addition to that not get the subsidies back from the league. So it's a challenge, but we think as we rebuild this team and gain the cap flexibility that we want to have and remain disciplined and patient in our approach, we can get it done."
That's not to say the Pacers absolutely won't pay the tax. Morway points out that the Pacers did pay the tax when they were among the league's elite teams.
"If you go back and look at our franchise, we were a luxury tax payer occasionally, when we were a championship level team. I will tell you that Larry and I have never looked at it as we have to build this team below the luxury tax. Our charge is to build this team and win and stay within the confines of the cap. We think we can get that done, but we'll see."
The first step, of course, is the draft, and the Pacers are busily working the phones in an effort to decide how best to use the tenth overall pick.
"We're looking at everything. We've explored moving up; we've explored moving down; we've explored trading the pick for players. We'll see where that takes us in the next week. If, in fact, we decide not to do anything, we're really comfortable with the pick and believe we'll get a player that will become a core part of the future of the franchise. At this point, we haven't made a determination as to which way to go."
The Pacers do have a little bit of breathing room under the cap as of today, but with the cap very likely to drop for next season the Pacers expect trades, rather than free agency, to be their primary option after the draft.
"At this point I believe the draft and trades will be more of our focus," says Morway. "We don't know what the tax will be this year, but in looking at it we believe we're going to be fairly close to the tax as we enter July 1. Unless we were to make a trade to clear room and created some space to entertain free agents, I think we'll be more involved in trades as we look to improve this summer."
Rumors have linked the Pacers to talks with the New Orleans Hornets (for Darren Collison), the Denver Nuggets (for Ty Lawson) and even the San Antonio Spurs (Tony Parker), and while conversations have taken place with the teams in question nothing is imminent as of this writing. The Pacers continue to explore their options, and expect to have quite a few conversations with teams across the NBA between now and draft day.
One thing is clear: the Pacers need a point guard, and probably not just the kind they could land with the tenth pick. The NBA has evolved to the point that teams either need Kobe Bryant or a quick, penetrating point guard to get deep into the playoffs. TJ Ford is a nice player, but he's not the kind of floor leader who gets you past the likes of Rajon Rondo, Derrick Rose or Jameer Nelson - all very likely opponents should the Pacers join the postseason fray. The Pacers still hold out hope for the injured AJ Price, but they understand they must upgrade their point guard position if they hope to get into the playoff discussion next season.
That may turn out to be their top priority.
In Related
Pacers coach Jim O'Brien has added Walter McCarty to his staff. O'Brien was on Kentucky's staff when McCarty was a player there and later coached him in Boston. "I've had the privilege to be associated with Walter at the University of Kentucky and with the Boston Celtics," O'Brien said in a statement. "He's an extremely hard-working student of the game, and he and his family will be great additions to the Pacers and Indianapolis area." McCarty replaces Lester Conner, who was not retained.
Read more NBA news and insight: http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?...#ixzz0rEWxZ1Yn
The Indiana Pacers are not exactly frequent flyers when it comes to the top of the NBA draft. This year they own the tenth pick, and it's the first time they've had a top ten pick since Jonathan Bender, the fifth overall pick in 1999, and even he was acquired via trade with the Toronto Raptors (for Antonio Davis). They haven't actually owned a top ten pick since 1996, when they drafted Erick Dampier, a testament to the success of the franchise.
The Pacers are smack in the middle of a rebuilding project now, and they expect the tenth pick to be a significant factor for them in that process. Common wisdom has the team picking a point guard, but the Pacers are not ready to commit to a particular position. They like Avery Bradley from UT, but they also like Epke Udoh, Baylor's low post enforcer. They're also very open to moving the pick, and have had discussions with the vast majority of the other teams in the NBA to gauge what the pick might bring back in trade.
"Our focus is to get better," says Pacers GM David Morway. "That's the focus, to get better in all facets. There's no question that we are looking for a point guard who can be part of the core of this franchise moving forward, but we also have other areas that we need to improve to become the type of team we want to be moving forward."
One of the primary goals of the Pacers since team president Larry Bird and Morway came together to rebuild the team has been to create cap flexibility and avoid players with long-term contracts who don't directly address the team's goal of returning to the playoffs. They have carefully cleared out the majority of their contracts that extended beyond next season, with only Danny Granger and Dahntay Jones currently guaranteed beyond that. Still, if they can land a franchise piece between now and then they won't hesitate to use some of that cap space now.
"Our plan from the outset was to create cap flexibility, to create the kind of flexibility that would allow us to make intelligent basketball decisions in terms of adding players who can help us win," says Morway. "If we have the ability during this draft period or during the summer, where we can add a player that Larry and Coach (Jim) O'Brien and I believe can be a part of this core and the future of the franchise and it eats up some of our cap flexibility next year, we would be more than willing to look at that."
Last night the Los Angeles Lakers win their 16th NBA championship, and the cost was a cool $40 million in luxury tax. It is, indeed, a luxury for a team in the LA market to stay profitable despite such an outrageous tax bill, and it's a luxury a small market team like the Pacers can't afford.
"Our responsibility is to put the best product on the floor to try and win an NBA championship," explains Morway. "Our ownership is terrific, and there's never been a question that when it came to winning that Mr. (Herb) Simon would spend the money to win. I think Larry and I have always looked at our responsibility as being to put the best product on the floor and stay under the luxury tax. At times that can be difficult, but that's our goal and we believe we can put a winning product on the floor doing that, but it is a challenge for small market teams. No question about it. We cannot afford to go over the luxury tax and pay the dollar-for-dollar tax and in addition to that not get the subsidies back from the league. So it's a challenge, but we think as we rebuild this team and gain the cap flexibility that we want to have and remain disciplined and patient in our approach, we can get it done."
That's not to say the Pacers absolutely won't pay the tax. Morway points out that the Pacers did pay the tax when they were among the league's elite teams.
"If you go back and look at our franchise, we were a luxury tax payer occasionally, when we were a championship level team. I will tell you that Larry and I have never looked at it as we have to build this team below the luxury tax. Our charge is to build this team and win and stay within the confines of the cap. We think we can get that done, but we'll see."
The first step, of course, is the draft, and the Pacers are busily working the phones in an effort to decide how best to use the tenth overall pick.
"We're looking at everything. We've explored moving up; we've explored moving down; we've explored trading the pick for players. We'll see where that takes us in the next week. If, in fact, we decide not to do anything, we're really comfortable with the pick and believe we'll get a player that will become a core part of the future of the franchise. At this point, we haven't made a determination as to which way to go."
The Pacers do have a little bit of breathing room under the cap as of today, but with the cap very likely to drop for next season the Pacers expect trades, rather than free agency, to be their primary option after the draft.
"At this point I believe the draft and trades will be more of our focus," says Morway. "We don't know what the tax will be this year, but in looking at it we believe we're going to be fairly close to the tax as we enter July 1. Unless we were to make a trade to clear room and created some space to entertain free agents, I think we'll be more involved in trades as we look to improve this summer."
Rumors have linked the Pacers to talks with the New Orleans Hornets (for Darren Collison), the Denver Nuggets (for Ty Lawson) and even the San Antonio Spurs (Tony Parker), and while conversations have taken place with the teams in question nothing is imminent as of this writing. The Pacers continue to explore their options, and expect to have quite a few conversations with teams across the NBA between now and draft day.
One thing is clear: the Pacers need a point guard, and probably not just the kind they could land with the tenth pick. The NBA has evolved to the point that teams either need Kobe Bryant or a quick, penetrating point guard to get deep into the playoffs. TJ Ford is a nice player, but he's not the kind of floor leader who gets you past the likes of Rajon Rondo, Derrick Rose or Jameer Nelson - all very likely opponents should the Pacers join the postseason fray. The Pacers still hold out hope for the injured AJ Price, but they understand they must upgrade their point guard position if they hope to get into the playoff discussion next season.
That may turn out to be their top priority.
In Related
Pacers coach Jim O'Brien has added Walter McCarty to his staff. O'Brien was on Kentucky's staff when McCarty was a player there and later coached him in Boston. "I've had the privilege to be associated with Walter at the University of Kentucky and with the Boston Celtics," O'Brien said in a statement. "He's an extremely hard-working student of the game, and he and his family will be great additions to the Pacers and Indianapolis area." McCarty replaces Lester Conner, who was not retained.
Read more NBA news and insight: http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?...#ixzz0rEWxZ1Yn
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