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The Rules of Pacers Digest

Hello everyone,

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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:

"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"

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"Remember when PosterX said OldCommentY that no longer looks good? "

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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Insider: Victor Oladipo believes new-look Pacers 'definitely' will make playoffs

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  • #1

    Insider: Victor Oladipo believes new-look Pacers 'definitely' will make playoffs

    Victor Oladipo isn’t going to talk much about the right knee injury that ended his second All-Star season with the Indiana Pacers.

    He wouldn't speak on it at all Saturday, though a league source told IndyStar a few days prior that the guard remains on track to return during the 2019-20 season, which opens Oct. 23 for the Pacers.

    The new direction of the team, with the additions of Malcolm Brogdon, Jeremy Lamb, T.J. Warren, T.J. McConnell, Justin Holiday and JaKarr Sampson, has given Oladipo confidence to say at least this:





    "Playoffs, for sure. Definitely."

    Victor Oladipo gives instruction at his Basketball Procamp, at Grand Park, Westfield, Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019. (Photo: RobertScheer)
    The East has changed. Kawhi Leonard left the champion Toronto Raptors. The Milwaukee Bucks, who had the league's best record, lost Brogdon and could take a step back. The Boston Celtics lost Kyrie Irving and Al Horford. Outside of the Philadelphia 76ers' retooling and getting stronger, the conference is difficult to sort out.

    Oladipo was entertaining 500 kids at his two-day ProCamp, which grew significantly from a year ago. The facilities at Park Tudor School weren't big enough, sending the event to Grand Park in Westfield.

    It’s what comes with being a bigger star, even after missing 46 games when he tore a quad muscle in his knee Jan. 23.

    The Pacers still won 48 games for the second year in a row. Their fall in the postseason, however, was pronounced.

    After pushing the eventual conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games in 2018, they were swept by the Celtics last season. The Pacers were held under 100 points three times in the four-game sweep.

    The optimism drained from the locker room, president Kevin Pritchard turned over a new leaf.

    Thaddeus Young was allowed to leave (Chicago). Darren Collision abruptly retired. They tried to keep Bojan Bogdanovic but he walked (Utah). They at least wanted to keep Cory Joseph but knew he would be too expensive in the open market and he departed, too (Sacramento).

    "I’m still close to those guys anyway. I talked to Thad a week ago. I talked to D.C. a couple weeks ago as well. I talked to Bogey," Oladipo said. "It’s bigger than just basketball with those guys. It’s about building relationships. When you’re with guys for two long years you build relationships and you build friendships that will last forever. It’s pretty cool to be able to still contact them and be able to have conversations. They’re all going off and doing their own thing, big things, special things and I’m proud of them.”

    It's on to Oladipo's new family starting with Brogdon, who was the big-ticket item coming in via an $85 million sign-and-trade deal.

    "I feel like we got some great additions. We got a chance to be really special. I feel like the league is wide open," Oladipo said. “I was excited for the opportunity to play with (Brogdon). I know what type of player he is, the level that he plays on and has been playing on the last couple of years from Milwaukee. To have him as an addition is pretty big for us."

    The Pacers locker room chemistry, which had been a strength, suffered without Oladipo. The drama surrounding Tyreke Evans, who is now serving a two-year suspension from the league over violating the drug policy, contributed as well. He was on the verge of being cut on several occasions until vets Young, Joseph and Collison stepped in, a league source said. Young spoke openly about giving Evans guidance.

    There also was an unhappiness with younger players wanting more of a chance while coach Nate McMillan stuck with older ones, multiple league sources told IndyStar.

    This kind of friction happens, especially with so many players on expiring contracts entering free agency.

    That's unlikely to be an issue again. The Pacers aren't inundated with expiring deals. They're young everywhere with the projected starting five well under 30.

    Justin Holiday, a reserve, is the oldest at 30. His brother, Aaron, will get a bump in the rotation in his second season as Brogdon's back up.

    Lamb, who’ll start in Oladipo’s absence and then become the sixth man, is 27. So is Oladipo. Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis are 23. Warren is 25. Brogdon will be 27.

    The biggest early-season question: Who'll replace the voice of the rehabbing Oladipo and Young in the locker room to start the season to help a teammate in need or provide positive reinforcement?

    That's unknown, though Brogdon and McConnell appear to be at the front of the line.

    What appears certain is that this will be a team that's able to play faster. McMillan has asked for and received more versatile pieces.

    Brogdon can play on or off ball. That's true for Lamb as well, though he's not the creator for others when he runs the pick-and-roll.

    A team that had difficulty with execution because it had a dearth of ballhandlers should score more on offense and be able to switch more on defense.

    That's what intrigues Oladipo.

    "We have the ability now to play that way. We have the personnel to play that way," he said. "We have a lot of guys who can do things with the ball. Not only me. I don’t think we've had that before. It's going to be a lot of opportunities for guys to go out there and make things happen."

    It’s back to Miami after this weekend, Oladipo's offseason home. His goal is to keep everything about his recovery under wraps and surprise everyone.

    That could mean returning sooner than the December/January timeline, being in peak form right away or becoming a three-time All-Star.

    The latter will be difficult. The first All-Star tallies come out around Christmas. While the popular vote could elevate Oladipo as a starter despite not having the resume of an All-Star, a return in early December could give him enough of one for coaches to name him as a reserve.

    “I’m not sure. I really can't control that. I couldn’t control it the last two years," Oladipo said. "I can’t control it now. I'm just worried about getting back and helping us win a championship.”

    The current building blocks have to fall firmly into place. Then he can hit the ground running again.
    Victor Oladipo certain on playoffs for Pacers after offseason moves
    https://www.indystar.com
    Sittin on top of the world!
    Tags: None
    • 2 likes
  • #2
    Great. We failed to develop Holiday last year because Thad and company stepped in and kept Nate from cutting Tyreke.
    "Look, it's up to me to put a team around ... Lance right now." —Kevin Pritchard press conference

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    • #3
      I find the comment about almost cutting him several times not very inspiring. KP deserves criticism for that one. Taking risks on players with issues
      almost never turns out good.
      {o,o}
      |)__)
      -"-"-
      • 1 like

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      • #4
        I don't know who wrote that, it's behind a paywall. But did the writer really end the article speculating about Dipo's chances to make the all star team? That's an odd thing to be thinking about now. Doesn't really seem like an "Insider" would be going there.

        • 1 like

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        • #5
          I don't think he's speculating; rather hinting that an Oladipo return will be earlier than most people think. Read: beginning of the season (it would be wild if he returned in October).

          Comment

          • #6
            Originally posted by Strummer View Post
            I don't know who wrote that, it's behind a paywall. But did the writer really end the article speculating about Dipo's chances to make the all star team? That's an odd thing to be thinking about now. Doesn't really seem like an "Insider" would be going there.
            J. Michael wrote that, he is the Pacers beat writer so....


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

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            • #7
              Originally posted by McKeyFan View Post
              Great. We failed to develop Holiday last year because Thad and company stepped in and kept Nate from cutting Tyreke.
              I know a lot of people had a good time with last years team, but I really just consider it a lost year. Only Myles & Domas who are youngish got consistent min. to develop last year. We should have been looking to move Thad and Cory Joseph at the deadline last year. But why what's done is done and going forward Nate has no choice but to play players who are either going to sink or swim.


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

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Peck View Post

                I know a lot of people had a good time with last years team, but I really just consider it a lost year. Only Myles & Domas who are youngish got consistent min. to develop last year. We should have been looking to move Thad and Cory Joseph at the deadline last year. But why what's done is done and going forward Nate has no choice but to play players who are either going to sink or swim.
                It just seems like the Pacers do not like to change mid stream. After Victor went down I guess the players wanted to give it their best shot and KP obliged.
                Maybe that loyalty pays a dividend down the road somewhere. I believe you were against the Granger trade and what it did to chemistry so maybe they did not
                want that bad rap again.
                {o,o}
                |)__)
                -"-"-
                • 1 like

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by imawhat View Post
                  I don't think he's speculating; rather hinting that an Oladipo return will be earlier than most people think. Read: beginning of the season (it would be wild if he returned in October).
                  I was at the entire Oladipo camp this weekend (my son participated), and he most certainly not did look like a player who was months away from a return. Was hitting 3/4 court jump shots, doing lots of crazy ball handling and in outstanding spirits.

                  Was not favoring the leg in any way, but also wasn’t jumping for dunks either.

                  I’d heavily err on the side of a sooner than later return. Got lots of videos and pics of Vic shooting, with the kids, etc if you all are interested.

                  Spoke with Montieth for a long time as well as Vic’s manager.

                  Expectations are high for this years group. I heard things like: “T.J. Warren is going to be a much better player than Bogdanovich”, and others.


                  Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
                  • 8 likes

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                  • #10
                    Here a really good article about Vic's injury.

                    https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/w...n-an-acl-tear/
                    • 3 likes

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by docpaul View Post

                      I was at the entire Oladipo camp this weekend (my son participated), and he most certainly not did look like a player who was months away from a return. Was hitting 3/4 court jump shots, doing lots of crazy ball handling and in outstanding spirits.

                      Was not favoring the leg in any way, but also wasn’t jumping for dunks either.

                      I’d heavily err on the side of a sooner than later return. Got lots of videos and pics of Vic shooting, with the kids, etc if you all are interested.

                      Spoke with Montieth for a long time as well as Vic’s manager.

                      Expectations are high for this years group. I heard things like: “T.J. Warren is going to be a much better player than Bogdanovich”, and others.


                      Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
                      Thanks for the in person info. Always appreciate it.

                      Also let your son know, and you as well , we missed both of you at our last gathering. Hope you guys can make it in the future.


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

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Peck View Post

                        Thanks for the in person info. Always appreciate it.

                        Also let your son know, and you as well , we missed both of you at our last gathering. Hope you guys can make it in the future.
                        I still remember the table being asked about Lance Stephenson, and DocPaul's son exuberantly yelling, "Lance, make 'em dance!" while Bills looked like he had just walked into a stinky bathroom.


                        "He’s no shrinking violet when it comes to that kind of stuff."

                        - Rick Carlisle on how Kevin Pritchard responds to needed roster changes.
                        • 2 likes

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                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Peck View Post

                          I know a lot of people had a good time with last years team, but I really just consider it a lost year. Only Myles & Domas who are youngish got consistent min. to develop last year. We should have been looking to move Thad and Cory Joseph at the deadline last year. But why what's done is done and going forward Nate has no choice but to play players who are either going to sink or swim.
                          In regards to letting Aaron "sink or swim" because Nate doesn't have a choice, I'd agree if it weren't for the addition of McConnell to the lineup and Brogdon possibly helping to run the offense. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the McConnell signing. But one of things I was hoping to do was to go into Training Camp with Aaron and Sumner as the only backup PG options. Adding McConnell to the lineup is a great opportunity, but not one for Aaron.

                          I could possibly agree with you on this when it comes to Leaf given the lack of any real experienced depth in the Frontcourt beyond Sabonis and Myles. Nate maybe forced to play Leaf and/or Goga simply for that reason. Unfortunately; it wouldn't surprise me if Nate ended up playing TJ Warren as a small ball backup PF.

                          My hope is that Aaron and Leaf can be given a very consistent 20+ mpg during non-garbage times. But I'm not holding my breath.
                          Ash from Army of Darkness: Good...Bad...I'm the guy with the gun.
                          • 1 like

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by McKeyFan View Post
                            Great. We failed to develop Holiday last year because Thad and company stepped in and kept Nate from cutting Tyreke.
                            there's two ways to read that passage. it could also mean they stepped in and intervened with tyreke to get his **** together, so they didn't end up cutting him.

                            that said, this also sounds like something KP might make up.
                            • 1 like

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Peck View Post

                              Thanks for the in person info. Always appreciate it.

                              Also let your son know, and you as well , we missed both of you at our last gathering. Hope you guys can make it in the future.
                              That’s so thoughtful. Thanks, we will be there next time! Will ended up having a good friend leave the neighborhood the night of the last gathering so he made the right choice and spent time with him (even though it didn’t feel like it at the time). Here are some pics of the kids with Vic:






                              Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
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