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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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Remember the Pacers past: Reggie Harding - Very sad story

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  • #1

    Remember the Pacers past: Reggie Harding - Very sad story

    Reggie Harding - a very good basketball player who had a hard life and could never cope with his personal demons. It was rumored that the Pacers had him on a game by game contract and when he didn't show up for a game they didn't pay him. I saw him play a couple of times, he dominated the paint. Very good read, very sad story.


    Reginald Hezeriah Harding (May 4, 1942 – September 2, 1972) was an American professional basketball player. He starred while playing at Eastern High School in his hometown of Detroit, Michigan, and entered the 1962 NBA draft without playing college basketball due to eligibility issues. Harding was selected by the Detroit Pistons as the first player drafted into the National Basketball Association (NBA) without having played in college.

    Harding played his first professional season in the Midwest Professional Basketball League (MPBL) before he joined the Pistons in 1964. He spent parts of four seasons in the NBA with the Pistons and the Chicago Bulls during which he was the subject of team misconduct, criminal activity and a season-long league suspension. After his NBA career ended, Harding played briefly in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) for the Trenton Colonials and the American Basketball Association (ABA) for the Indiana Pacers.

    Harding's career came to a premature end when he was imprisoned from 1969 to 1971 for a concealed weapons charge. He attempted to pursue a professional comeback after his release but he was murdered in Detroit in 1972.


    Early life


    Harding was born to 17-year-old Lillie Mae Thomas on May 4, 1942. Thomas' parents forced her to put her baby up for adoption and he was adopted by local couple Hezekiah and Fannie Harding, who were friends of the Thomas' and looked after unwanted children. Thomas would maintain a connection with her son; she followed Harding during his high school career and developed a relationship with him during his adult life. Thomas told relatives that Harding's father was a married man living in Detroit but never disclosed his identity.[4]

    Harding harbored aspirations of becoming a basketball player by the time he was 10 but was too shy to play with the other children at school. He was mentored by neighbor Bill Ervin, who introduced him to the players of a local court where Harding would hone his skills.

    High school career


    Harding attended Eastern High School in his hometown of Detroit, Michigan. He led Eastern to three straight city championships from 1959 to 1961.Standing 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m), Harding was considered to be the first player of his size in Michigan high school basketball and was highly regarded for his rebounding abilities. By his junior season, Harding was considered the "greatest high school player ever produced in Detroit's Public School League" but he was already experiencing grade issues that would have excluded him from college. When his playing eligibility finished in March 1961, Harding was not expected to graduate until January 1962. He estimated that he had received "135 college offers" but wanted to play for the Niagara Purple Eagles.

    After leaving Eastern, Harding attended the Nashville Christian Institute, a college-preparatory school in Nashville, Tennessee, and played basketball there until it was found out that his high school eligibility had expired. Harding's grades were too low to enter college.

    Professional career

    Harding was selected by his hometown Detroit Pistons in the 1962 NBA draft as the 29th overall pick and became the first NBA player to be drafted without playing in college. The legality of the selection was challenged immediately as the NBA rules stated a player could be drafted if they did not plan to enter college but needed to have been out of school for a full year. Harding's prep school stint in Tennessee brought this into question and he was ultimately unable to sign with the team due to the technicality in his eligibility. Pistons Director of Staff Fran Smith knew of the issue but stated that the team utilized the advantage of draft protection as several other teams had shown an interest in signing Harding. In July 1962, National Basketball Association Board of Governors ruled that the Pistons could retain his player rights but he could not be signed until the 1963–64 NBA season. Harding instead began his professional career in the Midwest Professional Basketball League (MPBL) with the Toledo Tartans and Cook's/Holland Oilers during the 1962–63 season. He was selected by the Detroit Pistons again in the 1963 NBA draft as the 48th overall pick. Harding was signed by the Pistons, but was kept off the roster for disciplinary reasons as he was involved in a police investigation. In 1963, Harding was assigned by the Pistons to a five-day clinic with Dr. W. M. Hardy, a chiropractor in Waynesville, North Carolina, who served as an advisor to the Pistons, and was taught how to shoot a basketball. Harding began the clinic with only the use of a right-handed hook shot but left with the ability to "shoot every shot in the book".

    On January 18, 1964, the NBA authorized the Pistons to allow Harding to join their roster, who had been touring with the exhibitional Harlem Road Kings. He became the Pistons' starting center four games into his NBA career and stayed in that position for the rest of the season. He averaged 11 points per game and played so well that Boston Celtics head coach Red Auerbach remarked about Harding before the 1964 NBA draft: "Say what they want to about all the fine, big fellows coming out of college in 1964, but the Pistons already have a guy who probably will outshine them all."Harding had high expectations entering the 1964–65 NBA season and he was considered to potentially "be a match for the NBA's top pivotmen".

    During his stint with the Pistons, Harding was notorious for his casual attitude and misbehavior. He slept through practice sessions and missed a flight for a game against the Baltimore Bullets.[ In August 1965, Harding was charged with assault and battery against a Detroit policeman while contesting a parking ticket. Harding was suspended indefinitely by the NBA for "conduct detrimental to professional basketball" in September 1965.He was found guilty of the assault and battery charge in October 1965 and fined $2,000 by the Pistons, which was the highest fine in professional basketball history at the time. Harding ultimately missed the entirety of the 1965–66 NBA season.

    Harding's suspension was lifted by the NBA in September 1966, who were aware that Harding threatened to sue if he was not allowed to return. Harding signed a one-year contract with the Pistons that totalled $15,000, where his return was heralded as being that of the "world's tallest reformed delinquent". Pistons player-coach Dave DeBusschere was elated to have Harding return and considered him "at least the fifth best center" in professional basketball when he last played – after Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Walt Bellamy and Nate Thurmond.

    Harding was traded to the Chicago Bulls on October 2, 1967, for a third round pick in the 1968 NBA draft. He was waived by the Bulls in December 1967 after he was suspended for overstaying a leave granted to him to attend his adoptive mother's funeral.[26][27]

    In January 1968, Harding signed with the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association (ABA). He was regarded for his physical play and was once chased off the court during a game by Denver Nuggets player Byron Beck after he elbowed Beck in the mouth. Teammate Roger Brown said of Harding: "He was a clown but he had talent. He was really physical and mean but we couldn't keep him on the court". Pacers general manager Mike Storen asked Ollie Darden to serve as Harding's unofficial bodyguard; Darden fed Harding, lent him clothing and took him to games when he could be found.Harding was fined by the Pacers on multiple occasions for misconduct and was ultimately suspended throughout the playoffs after he stopped attending practice. Pacers player Jerry Harkness believed that the team had a "good chance" to be ABA champions if Harding were not suspended.Harding was waived by the Pacers at the end of the season.

    Personal issues and death

    Harding's basketball career was cut short by a number of personal problems. Harding was arrested 11 times, often struggled with drug addictions, and was rumored to carry a pistol in his gym bag. As a high school student, Harding allegedly raped Florence Ballard, a member of The Supremes, at knifepoint outside a Detroit ballroom in 1960.

    Harding developed a heroin addiction during his NBA suspension in 1966 that he overcame in 1969.[ DeBusschere remarked that Harding was often isolated from his teammates as they felt "extremely uneasy" around him. During a television interview, Harding threatened to shoot the Indiana Pacers' general manager, Mike Storen. Harding also reportedly threatened to shoot teammate Jimmy Rayl while the two were rooming together. In June 1968, Harding was a police prisoner at Detroit General Hospital for an investigation of armed robbery. He returned to the hospital the following week with gunshot wounds to both legs in a separate incident. In 1969, Harding was sentenced to 2 and a half years in prison for a concealed weapons charge and served his sentence in Southern Michigan Prison.[38] After his release in June 1971, he attempted to make an NBA comeback but never signed with a team.

    Two weeks before Harding's death, his birth mother, Lillie Mae Thomas, was shot to death in an argument with her husband. At her funeral, Harding stood over her coffin for 15 minutes and instructed the funeral director on how he would want his own funeral.

    On September 1, 1972, Harding was shot twice in the head by Carl Scott, who had been involved in an argument with Harding 20 minutes earlier. Harding was taken to Detroit General Hospital where he died at 1:30pm EST the following day. He was survived by his wife and two children. Scott had not been arrested as of October 1972.

    Harding's son, Reginald Jr., was convicted of murder in 1988 and is serving life imprisonment without parole.


    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reggie_Harding
    Go Pacers!
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  • #2
    I am drawing a complete blank on the guys name but didn't we have a player (also a center) during Isiah's time here that just up and disappeared? Obviously Harden was way before my time and I never saw him play and I am pretty sure I've never even seen any film on him.


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

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    • #3
      Carlos Rogers
      • 1 like

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      • #4
        He was regarded for his physical play and was once chased off the court during a game by Denver Nuggets player Byron Beck after he elbowed Beck in the mouth.
        This would have been interesting to see, but was able to find only a couple brief youtube videos about Reggie Harding's story, and if there were even any actual clips of him playing, they weren't for more than a few seconds.

        It sounds like some feel he could have been a really great player had his mind been in the right place.
        Last edited by RamBo_Lamar; 05-02-2021, 08:20 PM.

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        • #5
          Originally posted by imawhat View Post
          Carlos Rogers
          https://bbs.clutchfans.net/threads/c...spended.29013/

          Pacers suspend Rogers
          Feb. 13, 2002. 01:35 AM
          INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Pacers forward Carlos Rogers was placed on the suspended list yesterday after not returning from the all-star break.

          Coach Isiah Thomas said Rogers' absence was unexcused.

          "I haven't had a chance to speak with Carlos, but I've been told by his agent he won't be returning for family reasons," Pacers president Donnie Walsh said in a written statement. Walsh said he was placing Rogers on the suspended list until he could contact Rogers, who had not personally informed the Pacers of his intentions.

          Rogers, who played for the Toronto Raptors from 1995 until traded to Portland in February 1998, had played mainly as a backup since signing with the Pacers as a free agent last fall.

          "He's got some type of family matter that I guess is very pressing," Thomas said before the game. "I haven't spoken with him. I'm trying to find out the details about what happened and what's going on."


          #1 NJRockFan, Feb 13, 2002
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          • #6
            In 1960, Florence Ballard was allegedly raped at knifepoint by local high-school basketball player Reggie Harding after leaving a sock hop at Detroit's Graystone Ballroom (she had attended with her brother, but they accidentally lost track of each other). The rape occurred in an empty parking lot off Woodward Avenue. Ballard responded by secluding herself in her house refusing to come outside, which worried her groupmates. Weeks later, Ballard told Wilson and Ross what had happened. Ross and Wilson were sympathetic. Both Wilson and Jesse Green, an early boyfriend of Florence's, had described her as a "generally happy if somewhat mischievous and sassy teenager." Wilson believes that the incident heavily contributed to the more self-destructive aspects of Ballard's adult personality, like cynicism, pessimism, and fear or distrust of others,but the rape was never mentioned again.

            As stated it was an alleged rape at the time Harding was 17, and Ballard 16. This was about a year before Ballard, Diana Ross & Mary Wilson (The Supremes) signed with Motown.
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