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The Rules of Pacers Digest

Hello everyone,

Whether your are a long standing forum member or whether you have just registered today, it's a good idea to read and review the rules below so that you have a very good idea of what to expect when you come to Pacers Digest.

A quick note to new members: Your posts will not immediately show up when you make them. An administrator has to approve at least your first post before the forum software will later upgrade your account to the status of a fully-registered member. This usually happens within a couple of hours or so after your post(s) is/are approved, so you may need to be a little patient at first.

Why do we do this? So that it's more difficult for spammers (be they human or robot) to post, and so users who are banned cannot immediately re-register and start dousing people with verbal flames.

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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Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

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  • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

    Originally posted by Really? View Post
    What do they need publicity for?
    I don't think its so much publicity as it is a ruse to let people think that they all came together naturally this time as opposed to not already having something set in place salary cap wise. So nobody is going to accuse them of collusion, $$$ under the table etc.

    Comment


    • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

      ...except they're already all on the same team. That would be totally pointless.

      It wasn't about being the team everyone loved, it was about beating the teams everyone else loved.

      Division Champions 1955, 1956, 1988, 1989, 1990, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
      Conference Champions 1955, 1956, 1988, 2005
      NBA Champions 1989, 1990, 2004

      Comment


      • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

        Originally posted by BillS View Post
        So you're implying that the most likely probability is that without Lance we're not even a playoff team in the East?

        And people wonder why I've gone to the sarcasm side of the Force.
        Hey, I guess we might just find out. Just as you are entitled to your opinion, I have mine. I don't make fun of you for yours. Lance was a big reason this team won so many games. It's not hard to believe that a player of his level leaves there will be a falloff in team wins and performance. He led the team in assists for crying out loud. Is Hill going to make that up? I don't think so, he's a terrible passer. We all know PGs love for dumb passing. Not to mention the hustle and hard play he brings. Pacers are lacking in the hustle dept. Lance was one of the more consistent players on the team and was very efficient from the field.

        We shall see. Glad you don't think Lance matters all that much.
        First time in a long time, I've been happy with the team that was constructed, and now they struggle. I blame the coach.

        Comment


        • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

          Originally posted by Sparhawk View Post
          Hey, I guess we might just find out. Just as you are entitled to your opinion, I have mine. I don't make fun of you for yours. Lance was a big reason this team won so many games. It's not hard to believe that a player of his level leaves there will be a falloff in team wins and performance. He led the team in assists for crying out loud. Is Hill going to make that up? I don't think so, he's a terrible passer. We all know PGs love for dumb passing. Not to mention the hustle and hard play he brings. Pacers are lacking in the hustle dept. Lance was one of the more consistent players on the team and was very efficient from the field.

          We shall see. Glad you don't think Lance matters all that much.
          I'm not saying he didn't matter that much, I'm just saying that I think he isn't the difference between the ECF and not making the playoffs at all. That's LeBron level single player difference.
          BillS

          A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
          Or throw in a first-round pick and flip it for a max-level point guard...

          Comment


          • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

            Originally posted by PacerPenguins View Post
            man instead of free agency news my timeline today has consisted of about 1000 voteRizzo and 500 votekluber
            No kidding.

            It is incredibly obnoxious that the entire league is essentially on hold while the Queen takes his sweet time.
            Stop quoting people I have on ignore!

            Comment


            • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

              Lance brings a lot of positives. And a lot of negatives. The questions are how they balance out, and what happens if you replace him with someone with fewer positives but with a whole lot fewer negatives.

              Who knows, you might get more out of other players who were adversely affected by Lance's negatives. Sure, they should have been strong enough to have not been affected by them. But they were, IMO.

              I want Lance back because I do think we will suffer, but I can see where the team may not be affected quite as adversely as one might expect to happen when replacing someone who should have been an all-star.
              The poster "pacertom" since this forum began (and before!). I changed my name here to "Slick Pinkham" in honor of the imaginary player That Bobby "Slick" Leonard picked late in the 1971 ABA draft (true story!).

              Comment


              • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                Originally posted by Sparhawk View Post
                Hey, I guess we might just find out. Just as you are entitled to your opinion, I have mine. I don't make fun of you for yours. Lance was a big reason this team won so many games. It's not hard to believe that a player of his level leaves there will be a falloff in team wins and performance. He led the team in assists for crying out loud. Is Hill going to make that up? I don't think so, he's a terrible passer. We all know PGs love for dumb passing. Not to mention the hustle and hard play he brings. Pacers are lacking in the hustle dept. Lance was one of the more consistent players on the team and was very efficient from the field.

                We shall see. Glad you don't think Lance matters all that much.
                People seem to forget that we were a good team in the East prior to Lance's breakout season last year. We went to the ECF with Lance being a glorified 5th option glue guy. GH (the guy you seem to underestimate) showed that he can produce at a higher level that season. Roy and West are former All Stars. And PG has made a quantum leap as a player since then.

                Losing Lance could hurt, but only if the rest of the team were to not step up. But lets not act like Lance is the poster boy for playing hard and all-out hustle. If that were true, there would be multiple teams reaching out to him with large like they are to Parsons, Hayward, Ariza, etc. He has his sloppy, "i-give-up" moments just as much as any other player.

                Lance brings versatility, ball handling, among other things. He has talent, and certainly has value. But it's not irreplaceable value. But it's not impossible to think that his production could be replaced by other guys stepping up.

                We need to see how the rest of the FA period and off-season shake out before we imply utter doom on the Pacers and their playoffs hopes.

                I will say though; the overestimation of Lance gets silly at times. You would think we hadn't had any playoff success prior to last season with some of the comments that were made (not directed at Sparhawk)
                Last edited by Ace E.Anderson; 07-10-2014, 01:22 PM.

                Comment


                • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                  Originally posted by BillS View Post
                  So you're implying that the most likely probability is that without Lance we're not even a playoff team in the East?

                  And people wonder why I've gone to the sarcasm side of the Force.
                  Okay let's put this to the test then.

                  If Lance signs somewhere else and we can sign no other significant free agents and we go into the season without a trade and the team as it is now is the team that plays for the season, where do you think they fall into the grand scheme of things? You don't have to pick a particular spot just go with top tier of the east (1-3) middle of the pack (4-8) or bottom tier (9 and beyond)?

                  For the sake of argument let's just put all the players back in their original teams as well. LeBron to the Heat, Anthony to the Knicks, etc.


                  Basketball isn't played with computers, spreadsheets, and simulations. ChicagoJ 4/21/13

                  Comment


                  • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                    News!


                    Comment


                    • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                      LBJ will probably announce his decision at halftime of the World Cup finals.

                      Comment


                      • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                        Originally posted by Wyatt View Post
                        LBJ will probably announce his decision at halftime of the World Cup finals.
                        15 posts in 8 years? You're either a man of few words or an extremely slow typist.

                        Comment


                        • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                          Originally posted by Peck View Post
                          Okay let's put this to the test then.

                          If Lance signs somewhere else and we can sign no other significant free agents and we go into the season without a trade and the team as it is now is the team that plays for the season, where do you think they fall into the grand scheme of things? You don't have to pick a particular spot just go with top tier of the east (1-3) middle of the pack (4-8) or bottom tier (9 and beyond)?

                          For the sake of argument let's just put all the players back in their original teams as well. LeBron to the Heat, Anthony to the Knicks, etc.
                          I'm game. I still think we are a top 3 team in the East. And I say that confidently.

                          Comment


                          • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                            Jeff Caplan
                            ‏@Caplan_NBA


                            Mavs GM Donnie Nelson tells reporters Chandler Parsons offer sheet has NOT been submitted to Rockets, so the 72-hour clock hasn't started.


                            ---
                            dang, pressure on Houston to get Bosh to decide, that may in turn get LeBron to decide,
                            seemed to be the way we would end this free agency constipation. But we're still all plugged up.
                            The poster "pacertom" since this forum began (and before!). I changed my name here to "Slick Pinkham" in honor of the imaginary player That Bobby "Slick" Leonard picked late in the 1971 ABA draft (true story!).

                            Comment


                            • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                              On EC playoffs. With the Bulls (if DRose 100%) and Lebron (either place) challenging the Pacers for the top two spots, imo. Wash / Toronto could put it together and be improved to be that level. Who am I missing? I see Lance as a loss for sure, but the East is so average its really impossible for me to not see them as a top 4 seed. I mean what was the difference in the 3rd seeds record in the East last year and the Pacers. So ya, I'll say 1-5 range even without Lance.

                              Comment


                              • Re: Offseason News, Trades, Rumors, Etc.

                                Originally posted by Ace E.Anderson View Post
                                I'm game. I still think we are a top 3 team in the East. And I say that confidently.
                                I think if we lose Lance, as long as we can deal Hibbert, Hill, and West we will still be MAJOR contenders. When you look at our options, we have two who can replace West in the starting lineup. Copeland and LaVoy Allen. LaVoy has the shot range, but is younger and hasn't hit the ceiling on his game yet. He'd have to add some more post moves but the potential is there.

                                Copeland has proven last season he can start as a stretch 4. He isn't afraid to take and make big shots either. He will probably have to drop some muscle so he can regain his Knicks days quickness though. But dealing West, Roy, and Hill and getting back multiple pieces would be the way to go. Targets would include.......



                                Dragic
                                Reggie Jackson
                                Jeremy Lamb
                                Jason Thompson
                                Wilson Chandler
                                Nate Robinson
                                Kenneth Faried
                                Brandon Knight
                                OJ Mayo
                                Troy Daniels
                                Nick Young
                                Jameer Nelson
                                Rondo
                                Isaiah Thomas
                                Jeff Green
                                Joe Johnson
                                Deron Wiliams
                                Josh Smith
                                Greg Monroe






                                It can be done. For example, if we could deal West to Phoenix for Dragic. Or Hibbert to OKC for Lamb, Jackson, and Perkins expiring. Then move Hill and Solo to Sac for Jason Thompson. We'd be fine.

                                Comment

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