Re: Bird press conference
Here is the transcript for it so that we can read it:
http://www.nba.com/pacers/news/bird_080222.html
I just pulled out the part about the questions of team leadership. Take it for what you will. There is some parts that were left out of the IndyStar blurb.....that I think is kind of important ( as in a difference between a "locker-room" leader and an "on the court" leader...which I think CAN...but not necessarily SHOULD...be 2 different people ), but I think that the main jist of it is still there. He praises JONeal then says that we still says that we have no leader on the team.
Here is the transcript for it so that we can read it:
http://www.nba.com/pacers/news/bird_080222.html
I just pulled out the part about the questions of team leadership. Take it for what you will. There is some parts that were left out of the IndyStar blurb.....that I think is kind of important ( as in a difference between a "locker-room" leader and an "on the court" leader...which I think CAN...but not necessarily SHOULD...be 2 different people ), but I think that the main jist of it is still there. He praises JONeal then says that we still says that we have no leader on the team.
Q. Have you decided what your nucleus is?
A. We've got some very good basketball players, we just don't have a lot of superstars on our team. When I talk about nucleus, I talk about Danny Granger, I talk about Jermaine O'Neal, I talk about Jamaal Tinsley, I talk about Mike Dunleavy. The core group here, really, is Jermaine, Danny, Mike, them are guys you can build around, and Shawne as he gets older. That's a nucleus and you've got to build around that. We have other players. You can go down through there and Jeff Foster, he's a leader, he's the type of guy that players hard every night. But we've got to get more talent on this team and we understand that whether it's through the draft, free agency or trades and we will do that.
Q. Where do you see Jermaine O'Neal fitting into the future here?
A. We'll look at all avenues with Jermaine. Jermaine hasn't been healthy. Jermaine hasn't really practiced. He hasn't been in top condition for awhile. Going forward, we will look at all options. I think the key right now is to get him healthy, get him back in this season and this summer take a look at everything. He understands that and we understand that. When you look at our cap, he takes almost a third of our cap and we expect, when you pay a guy what we're paying him, he's got to produce. Being in a small market, he's got to be able to do the things that he's done in the past and help this team grow. But when he's not playing, it takes a lot out of us, there's no question about it. So we have to take a look at all of our options this summer.
Q. Has Jermaine indicated his intentions about his contract option (O'Neal has the option to forego the final two seasons of his contract and become a free agent)?
A. You mean as far as opting out? Come on. Actually, he hasn't talked to me about it but I assume that he will not opt out.
Q. Does this team have necessary leadership?
A. You know, these guys get along very well. I think they like one another, but that's not leadership. I don't think we have what I call a great leader in that locker room. Players will say, 'Come on, I'm a leader.' No. It's not there. When a guy's late, if you have a leader he goes to that guy and says, 'Look, we don't do that here.' If a guy misses a bus, 'We don't have that.' If the team gets beat on a last-second shot and a guy misses a defensive assignment, the leader goes to that guy and says, 'Hey, come on, what are you thinking?' We don't have that. And until we have that we will struggle, at times, there's no question about it. But as far as 'the leader,' no, we don't have that.
Q. Can it develop from someone on the team or must it be brought from the outside?
A. It's tough to bring a player in the first year to be a leader from outside. I can see Danny Granger, over time, being that. Danny's one of them kids that comes in here right now, looks around, keeps his mouth shut, practices hard, plays hard, takes everything in and goes home. I know what he's thinking. His time will come and he'll probably be that guy.
Q. Are the team's ongoing fourth-quarter problems a sign of that lack of leadership?
A. They get very down on themselves because the same thing's happening over and over. If you notice, in the last however many games we've been in and lost, it's always been the key player from the other team making the plays to win the games. We haven't got that out there. Ours is hurt. Until we get him back we probably will struggle in that area. But at the same time, a lot of our young guys are going through some situations knowing what they have to do to get us over the hump. As we go forward, I think these guys will be good enough and learn enough from these stars that are doing this to us that they will overcome that and continue to get better at that.
A. We've got some very good basketball players, we just don't have a lot of superstars on our team. When I talk about nucleus, I talk about Danny Granger, I talk about Jermaine O'Neal, I talk about Jamaal Tinsley, I talk about Mike Dunleavy. The core group here, really, is Jermaine, Danny, Mike, them are guys you can build around, and Shawne as he gets older. That's a nucleus and you've got to build around that. We have other players. You can go down through there and Jeff Foster, he's a leader, he's the type of guy that players hard every night. But we've got to get more talent on this team and we understand that whether it's through the draft, free agency or trades and we will do that.
Q. Where do you see Jermaine O'Neal fitting into the future here?
A. We'll look at all avenues with Jermaine. Jermaine hasn't been healthy. Jermaine hasn't really practiced. He hasn't been in top condition for awhile. Going forward, we will look at all options. I think the key right now is to get him healthy, get him back in this season and this summer take a look at everything. He understands that and we understand that. When you look at our cap, he takes almost a third of our cap and we expect, when you pay a guy what we're paying him, he's got to produce. Being in a small market, he's got to be able to do the things that he's done in the past and help this team grow. But when he's not playing, it takes a lot out of us, there's no question about it. So we have to take a look at all of our options this summer.
Q. Has Jermaine indicated his intentions about his contract option (O'Neal has the option to forego the final two seasons of his contract and become a free agent)?
A. You mean as far as opting out? Come on. Actually, he hasn't talked to me about it but I assume that he will not opt out.
Q. Does this team have necessary leadership?
A. You know, these guys get along very well. I think they like one another, but that's not leadership. I don't think we have what I call a great leader in that locker room. Players will say, 'Come on, I'm a leader.' No. It's not there. When a guy's late, if you have a leader he goes to that guy and says, 'Look, we don't do that here.' If a guy misses a bus, 'We don't have that.' If the team gets beat on a last-second shot and a guy misses a defensive assignment, the leader goes to that guy and says, 'Hey, come on, what are you thinking?' We don't have that. And until we have that we will struggle, at times, there's no question about it. But as far as 'the leader,' no, we don't have that.
Q. Can it develop from someone on the team or must it be brought from the outside?
A. It's tough to bring a player in the first year to be a leader from outside. I can see Danny Granger, over time, being that. Danny's one of them kids that comes in here right now, looks around, keeps his mouth shut, practices hard, plays hard, takes everything in and goes home. I know what he's thinking. His time will come and he'll probably be that guy.
Q. Are the team's ongoing fourth-quarter problems a sign of that lack of leadership?
A. They get very down on themselves because the same thing's happening over and over. If you notice, in the last however many games we've been in and lost, it's always been the key player from the other team making the plays to win the games. We haven't got that out there. Ours is hurt. Until we get him back we probably will struggle in that area. But at the same time, a lot of our young guys are going through some situations knowing what they have to do to get us over the hump. As we go forward, I think these guys will be good enough and learn enough from these stars that are doing this to us that they will overcome that and continue to get better at that.
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