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(Conrad Brunner)
(Conrad Brunner)
The offense is more efficient.
The defense is more effective.
The players are in much more of a rhythm.
Those elements have been obvious factors in the Pacers' late-season surge of eight wins in 10 games overall and 10 out of 11 at home. But wherein lies the cause?
Chalk it up to continuity.
On March 14, Jim O'Brien started Earl Watson, Brandon Rush, Danny Granger, Troy Murphy and Roy Hibbert, and that lineup has been used in every game since with two exceptions (Hibbert and Granger each missed a game with minor injuries).
That group has been both the most common and productive of the season with an 11-12 record. None of the other 24 lineup combinations has been together more than seven games or won more than four.
The two most obvious beneficiaries of the lineup stability have been Granger and Murphy.
Granger has come alive of late, averaging 29.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.4 steals in the last 10 games. He's scored at least 30 points in six of the last nine.
After dealing with a troublesome foot and ever-changing lineups, he's finally feeling comfortable.
"It's one of those unfortunate things you've got to deal with when you're in a season and you get hurt, you've got to recover and play your way back," Granger said. "It's just a process.
"I think not only players but more importantly teams get into a rhythm and when you see the good teams in really good rhythms, that's when they go on these really good streaks of seven or eight games. That's what really sets the tone for the rest of the season and we hit our rhythm a little too late."
Murphy has also been on a roll with five straight double-doubles and 12 in his last 14 games. In those last five, Murphy has averaged 20.6 points and 13.2 rebounds and shot .574 from the field.
"He's a unique player in that last year and again this year he's one of the most deadly 3-point shooters," said O'Brien. "When you have somebody 6-11 that can do that it draws the other team away from the basket. He's also our top rebounder. He's having another very, very fine season and he's a nice weapon to have."
With those two veterans leading the way, and second-year players Hibbert and Rush continuing their growth, the guy tying up the package has been Watson. Most decidedly not a numbers guy, Watson has provided much-needed leadership from the point.
"Having a guy like that who is attacking the basket, attacking the paint and then finding people is every really good 3-point shooter's dream, to have that consistency," said O'Brien. "When our tempo picks up and we space the court and we're getting consistent 3-point shooting from Brandon's position it's very difficult to guard and defenses have to decide who they're going to try to stop. And there is the continued development of Roy.
"We want to make it challenging for the defenses to decide who they're going to concentrate on and again it comes back to the point guard. When you have a point guard that's attacking and thinking, 'Who can I hit? Who's open?' and probing and keeping his dribble, that's very important."
In the last 10, the Pacers have averaged 107.4 points. In the last 12, they've limited opponents to 97.3. Because of the personality of the team, those two numbers are inextricably linked.
"I think the better our offense is, the better our defense is," said O'Brien. "It seems at least for us that when we're not making shots our defense suffers because our spirits sag a little bit. That's something we would like to correct. But the fact that we're putting up great numbers from the 3-point line, we're playing better defense."
Ultimately, though, what does this all mean for fans frustrated by the team's inability to find its stride before it was too late?
"It gives hope to Pacerland," said Granger. "It shows what we're capable of and what we can do."
No word on D-League prospect
Though there was much chatter in the blogosphere about the Pacers planning to sign 6-7 point forward Marcus Williams from the D-League, there was no such word from the team.
O'Brien said there wouldn't be much value to signing any player from the D-League "other than potential trade value."
"Teams that bring in (D-League) guys with a non-guaranteed contract for next year can fit that into any trade situations during the summer," O'Brien said. "From the standpoint of if we were to bring in a guy right now, you could not expect to see him in games, let's put it that way."
A second-round pick of the Spurs out of Arizona in 2007, Williams has spent most of the past three seasons with the Austin Toros, averaging 21.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists.
The defense is more effective.
The players are in much more of a rhythm.
Those elements have been obvious factors in the Pacers' late-season surge of eight wins in 10 games overall and 10 out of 11 at home. But wherein lies the cause?
Chalk it up to continuity.
On March 14, Jim O'Brien started Earl Watson, Brandon Rush, Danny Granger, Troy Murphy and Roy Hibbert, and that lineup has been used in every game since with two exceptions (Hibbert and Granger each missed a game with minor injuries).
That group has been both the most common and productive of the season with an 11-12 record. None of the other 24 lineup combinations has been together more than seven games or won more than four.
The two most obvious beneficiaries of the lineup stability have been Granger and Murphy.
Granger has come alive of late, averaging 29.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.4 steals in the last 10 games. He's scored at least 30 points in six of the last nine.
After dealing with a troublesome foot and ever-changing lineups, he's finally feeling comfortable.
"It's one of those unfortunate things you've got to deal with when you're in a season and you get hurt, you've got to recover and play your way back," Granger said. "It's just a process.
"I think not only players but more importantly teams get into a rhythm and when you see the good teams in really good rhythms, that's when they go on these really good streaks of seven or eight games. That's what really sets the tone for the rest of the season and we hit our rhythm a little too late."
Murphy has also been on a roll with five straight double-doubles and 12 in his last 14 games. In those last five, Murphy has averaged 20.6 points and 13.2 rebounds and shot .574 from the field.
"He's a unique player in that last year and again this year he's one of the most deadly 3-point shooters," said O'Brien. "When you have somebody 6-11 that can do that it draws the other team away from the basket. He's also our top rebounder. He's having another very, very fine season and he's a nice weapon to have."
With those two veterans leading the way, and second-year players Hibbert and Rush continuing their growth, the guy tying up the package has been Watson. Most decidedly not a numbers guy, Watson has provided much-needed leadership from the point.
"Having a guy like that who is attacking the basket, attacking the paint and then finding people is every really good 3-point shooter's dream, to have that consistency," said O'Brien. "When our tempo picks up and we space the court and we're getting consistent 3-point shooting from Brandon's position it's very difficult to guard and defenses have to decide who they're going to try to stop. And there is the continued development of Roy.
"We want to make it challenging for the defenses to decide who they're going to concentrate on and again it comes back to the point guard. When you have a point guard that's attacking and thinking, 'Who can I hit? Who's open?' and probing and keeping his dribble, that's very important."
In the last 10, the Pacers have averaged 107.4 points. In the last 12, they've limited opponents to 97.3. Because of the personality of the team, those two numbers are inextricably linked.
"I think the better our offense is, the better our defense is," said O'Brien. "It seems at least for us that when we're not making shots our defense suffers because our spirits sag a little bit. That's something we would like to correct. But the fact that we're putting up great numbers from the 3-point line, we're playing better defense."
Ultimately, though, what does this all mean for fans frustrated by the team's inability to find its stride before it was too late?
"It gives hope to Pacerland," said Granger. "It shows what we're capable of and what we can do."
No word on D-League prospect
Though there was much chatter in the blogosphere about the Pacers planning to sign 6-7 point forward Marcus Williams from the D-League, there was no such word from the team.
O'Brien said there wouldn't be much value to signing any player from the D-League "other than potential trade value."
"Teams that bring in (D-League) guys with a non-guaranteed contract for next year can fit that into any trade situations during the summer," O'Brien said. "From the standpoint of if we were to bring in a guy right now, you could not expect to see him in games, let's put it that way."
A second-round pick of the Spurs out of Arizona in 2007, Williams has spent most of the past three seasons with the Austin Toros, averaging 21.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists.
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