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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:

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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.

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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

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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.

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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:

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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.

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If I copy and paste an article from the Indianapolis Star website, I would post something like this:

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Indianapolis Star

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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.

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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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Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

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  • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

    This team just doesn't have the players right now. Don't know what to tell you. This is what happens when you primarily play freshmen. Victor Oladipo didn't exactly come in playing lights out either. Cody Zeller was the exception to the rule.

    I get it...this team is HARD to watch. I can't watch most of these games. The drop-off from the execution of last year, to this year, is just way too steep. It's painful.

    But this is what happens when you play mostly freshmen who aren't UK-payroll caliber.

    I have two major criticisms of Crean, so I'm not a blind apologist. One...that 2012 recruiting class was pretty awful overall. Yogi is terrific, obviously, but to say HMP, Jurkin & Hollowell have disappointed would be massive understatements. And it's not like Ron Patterson is doing a whole lot at 'Cuse either (still, better than Jurkin...) You just can't have an elite program and whiff as badly on a class as Crean did in 2012. I'm not sure the Jurkin commitment ever made sense, and nothing appears to be changing that now.

    The other is just that he's a stubborn ***. Great recruiter, I think he's actually an underrated Xs & Os coach because everyone likes to "blah blah blah zone" but doesn't appear to watch any other college coaches who routinely do dumbass things, but he's stubborn to a fault. He's brash toward media at best, puts on a face for fans that doesn't really reflect his consideration of them, and sticks to some flawed philosophies. The blitzkrieg offense is terrific if you have transition shooters and great ballhandlers. But he should have known he didn't have a plethora of either heading into the season, and modified the offense thusly (he did try to install SOME post concepts for Vonleh, but at the end of the day Vonleh is raw and Crean isn't exactly known for dynamic post concepts either).

    So, yes, this season has been a little worse than even I expected, and I was wholly pessimistic heading into it. But look, they're beating some good teams, and they're losing close ones to bad teams. You have to learn how to win. I think they will. They're not really losing anyone of value next year, Yogi is going to continue to blossom into a star player, and you see it's just a matter of time before guys like Stan Robinson and Troy Williams get the whole of it, and someone like James Blackmon Jr can come in and answer for the lack of outside shooting -- which is killing this team more than anything right now.

    Firing Crean or abandoning all hope because of one slightly disappointing season seems ridiculous to me. Unless you're landing Brad Stevens, just take your lumps and see what's in front of you.

    Comment


    • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

      I'm sorry but the offense was horrible last year. Dribble drive and kick. Dribble Drive and Kick. Post entry. Doubled. No cuts. Dribble Drive and Kick. Dribble Drive and Kick.

      No curls, Minimal off ball screens, no screening a screener, no flex, generic motion offense, back cuts are weak, and no Hi-lo against a fronting zone defense.

      I hat IU's offense. Hate it.

      Comment


      • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

        Originally posted by Major Cold View Post
        I'm sorry but the offense was horrible last year. Dribble drive and kick. Dribble Drive and Kick. Post entry. Doubled. No cuts. Dribble Drive and Kick. Dribble Drive and Kick.

        No curls, Minimal off ball screens, no screening a screener, no flex, generic motion offense, back cuts are weak, and no Hi-lo against a fronting zone defense.

        I hat IU's offense. Hate it.
        The offense was absolutely fine last year until Crean ran it into the ground with A) incredibly intense practices that never eased up toward the B1G season conclusion and tourney time and B) zero depth.

        I'm not trying to be a jerk or a know-it-all, but I feel 100% confident in saying if you ask anyone close to the IU program, they will tell you Crean just ran that team into the ground last year. They were exhausted. They had tired legs. When they weren't tired, and had fresh legs, they were DAMN good, nation's best really.

        Comment


        • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

          Originally posted by Dr. Hibbert View Post
          The offense was absolutely fine last year until Crean ran it into the ground with A) incredibly intense practices that never eased up toward the B1G season conclusion and tourney time and B) zero depth.

          I'm not trying to be a jerk or a know-it-all, but I feel 100% confident in saying if you ask anyone close to the IU program, they will tell you Crean just ran that team into the ground last year. They were exhausted. They had tired legs. When they weren't tired, and had fresh legs, they were DAMN good, nation's best really.
          I always thought that the team just looked drained towards the end of the season. They were running on fumes; you could just tell.

          Comment


          • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

            Originally posted by cdash View Post
            I always thought that the team just looked drained towards the end of the season. They were running on fumes; you could just tell.
            I guarantee this is the case. Not just the smell test, though you could just tell they didn't even have fun playing toward the end. But I do know a few people inside the program who have always maintained that. Team just had nothing left at the end. Crean's practice strategy was (is?) insane.

            When that offense had legs, it was regularly in the 80-100 point range.

            Comment


            • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

              Cody Zeller mentioned in an interview they had a 4-hour practice one day in late February. Crean was notorious for overworking his Marquette teams; I guess I'm not surprised he does the same here.

              Comment


              • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                Crean's offense has NEVER looked good so it's not going to look good next year, the year after, or the next decade. It doesn't matter who he gets or loses in the recruitment battle. The offense won't improve until coaching improves.

                Lots of rah rah, very little substance.

                It's time to start making a list of candidates because Crean's on the clock.
                Nuntius was right for a while. I was wrong for a while. But ultimately I was right and Frank Vogel has been let go.

                ------

                "A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, that’s teamwork."

                -John Wooden

                Comment


                • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                  Originally posted by Bball View Post
                  Crean's offense has NEVER looked good
                  Really? Again, they looked terrific last year until Crean ran them into the ground.

                  Scored 80+, which I consider a fair standard for "good" college hoops offense, in 20 games last year. TWENTY.

                  The system works. You need the players. Right now, he doesn't have the players.

                  Comment


                  • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                    Originally posted by LuckSwagger View Post
                    Cody Zeller mentioned in an interview they had a 4-hour practice one day in late February. Crean was notorious for overworking his Marquette teams; I guess I'm not surprised he does the same here.
                    didn't know about the practices. sometimes some unpleasant, hard practices can be beneficial in motivating the players but- there is a limit. looks like tom doesn't get because he isn't actually running up and down the court with them and doesn't get it that they are real people and not robots.

                    Comment


                    • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                      Originally posted by Dr. Hibbert View Post
                      Really? Again, they looked terrific last year until Crean ran them into the ground.

                      Scored 80+, which I consider a fair standard for "good" college hoops offense, in 20 games last year. TWENTY.

                      The system works. You need the players. Right now, he doesn't have the players.
                      In the same way that O'Brien needed the right players....

                      Sorry... In a 'not gonna happen' world, Crean's never going to have the right players. The coach doesn't need the right players, the players need the right coach.

                      I'm done with Crean. When it's clear a coach has hit his ceiling and is not up to the standards needed there's no use making excuses for him. They just need to move on at IU sooner rather than later.
                      Nuntius was right for a while. I was wrong for a while. But ultimately I was right and Frank Vogel has been let go.

                      ------

                      "A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, that’s teamwork."

                      -John Wooden

                      Comment


                      • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                        Crean has shown that he can have tournament success when he has a player on his roster who goes on to become one of the greatest players in NBA history. Otherwise......

                        Comment


                        • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                          Originally posted by Sollozzo View Post
                          Crean has shown that he can have tournament success when he has a player on his roster who goes on to become one of the greatest players in NBA history. Otherwise......
                          I'm glad you brought up Travis Diener...
                          Nuntius was right for a while. I was wrong for a while. But ultimately I was right and Frank Vogel has been let go.

                          ------

                          "A player who makes a team great is more valuable than a great player. Losing yourself in the group, for the good of the group, that’s teamwork."

                          -John Wooden

                          Comment


                          • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                            Originally posted by Bball View Post
                            In the same way that O'Brien needed the right players....

                            Sorry... In a 'not gonna happen' world, Crean's never going to have the right players. The coach doesn't need the right players, the players need the right coach.

                            I'm done with Crean. When it's clear a coach has hit his ceiling and is not up to the standards needed there's no use making excuses for him. They just need to move on at IU sooner rather than later.
                            He had the right players LAST YEAR...

                            Comment


                            • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                              Originally posted by Dr. Hibbert View Post
                              So, yes, this season has been a little worse than even I expected, and I was wholly pessimistic heading into it. But look, they're beating some good teams, and they're losing close ones to bad teams. You have to learn how to win. I think they will. They're not really losing anyone of value next year, Yogi is going to continue to blossom into a star player, and you see it's just a matter of time before guys like Stan Robinson and Troy Williams get the whole of it, and someone like James Blackmon Jr can come in and answer for the lack of outside shooting -- which is killing this team more than anything right now.

                              Firing Crean or abandoning all hope because of one slightly disappointing season seems ridiculous to me. Unless you're landing Brad Stevens, just take your lumps and see what's in front of you.
                              Crean seems to think differently, but I think Noah Vonleh is pretty valuable. Or at least should be.
                              "I had to take her down like Chris Brown."

                              -Lance Stephenson

                              Comment


                              • Re: Indiana University Athletics Thread 2013-2014

                                Originally posted by BRushWithDeath View Post
                                Crean seems to think differently, but I think Noah Vonleh is pretty valuable. Or at least should be.
                                Whoops, forgot about Vonleh, was just thinking of seniority not draft.

                                Funny that this team everyone *****es about has a surefire lottery pick. Vonleh is raw as hell, but his skillset and ability to hit the glass screams lottery pick even in a great draft.

                                Comment

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