From the monthly archives:

December 2011

Post-Game Grades: Pistons 96, Pacers 88

by Jared Wade on December 31, 2011 at 9:20 pm · 4 comments

The Pacers proved something everyone already knew: You can’t shoot below 40% from the field for four games and go 4-0. This 96-88 loss was well-earned through atrocious offensive execution and nonchalant defensive effort. Feel free to praise these guys for their too-little-too-late near-comeback in the fourth, but it never should have gotten to that point. The Pacers were punched in the mouth in the opening minutes of the game and they never bothered to fight back.

According to Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star, the team’s flight was late getting to Detroit last night due to weather so they never arrived at their hotel until 4 am. That, however, cannot explain this. It was an ugly loss that the team hopes it can leave behind in the Old Year as it gears up for a trip to New Jersey to play the Nets on Monday.

Express your thoughts below in the comments of yell at me on Twitter @8pts9secs.

Indiana Pacers 88 – Detroit Pistons 96

DARREN COLLISON   4/6 FG (5/6 FT) | 15 PTS | 8 AST
It’s hard to criticize his offense when he scored 15 points on just 6 FGAs. But that’s part of the problem: when the rest of his team is floundering so badly, Darren needs to call his own number more often. PGs can control a game in many ways, and tonight, Indy needed even more scoring from its floor general.
PAUL GEORGE   2/5 FG | 7 PTS | 4 AST | 3 STL | +7 
George was a no-show for the second straight game. He did help spark the late “faux comeback” (term patent-pending) with his defense and was the only Pacer with a plus/minus so that counts for something. Not in his 8p9s grade, mind you, but for something somewhere else from someone.
DANNY GRANGER   4/15 FG | 11 PTS | 3 STL | +0
Danny was miserable. He has one positive stretch where he posted up Prince to get FTs then, on the other end, battled a posting Tayshaun on the block to force a bad shot. But he followed that up with a bad step-back jumper in isolation and a defensive lapse leading to a Prince three.
DAVID WEST   4/11 FG | 10 PTS | 5 REB | 3 AST | -6 
Larry Bird’s marquee offseason acquisition has now shot 18-for-49 as Pacer. Good for a scorching 36.7%. Worse still, he got caught napping badly twice in the 1st quarter, leading to two layups by Jonas Jerebko, who scored 8 points in the first 6 minutes of the game and 16 in the half.
ROY HIBBERT  4/7 FG | 9 PTS | 5 REB | 3 TO | -10 
Roy Hibbert allegedly played 25 minutes tonight but I’m struggling to remember even three positive plays he made. After a terrible game, his three-game double-double streak comes to end. And his single-single streak begins.

GEORGE HILL  7/11 FG | 16 PTS | 5 REB | -4 
There is one silver lining from this abysmal game: George Hill’s streak of terrible shooting ended. The backup guard finally found his groove, finishing well in transition and playing his typical solid defense.
TYLER HANSBROUGH  5/14 FG (6/7 FT) | 16 PTS | 5 REB
In addition to making one of the most quixotic plays I have seen in 25 years of watching NBA hoops (more on this soon), Tyler again missed a ton of shots. But he was more agressive than anyone else and led the team in scoring, so he wasn’t that bad by comparison to his mates.
DAHNTAY JONES  1/4 FG | 4 PTS | 2 BA | -7
Dahntay tries his heart out. He started off the 4th by missing a three, driving hard to the hoop through traffic (earning two FTAs) and missing another long two. None of this was particularly effective, but at least he was doing something. His aggressiveness was probably what sparked the faux comeback.
LOU AMUNDSON   2/2 FT | 2 PT | 2 REB | 4 PF | -7
Big Lou had two really nice blocks and caused a little chaos while he was on the floor. None of it was pretty, but that’s his job.
LANCE STEPHENSON  0/2 FG | 0 PT | 1 AST | 1 TO | -7
Lance missed three shots and got an assist during his 7 minutes on the floor. So, ya know, at least he didn’t get a Moonlight Graham box score.

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Post-Game Grades: Pacers 98, Cavs 91 (OT)

by Jared Wade on December 31, 2011 at 1:19 am · 6 comments

The Pacers had their ups and downs in a shaky outing against the lowly Cavaliers. But they won, pulling out a win but outplaying Cleveland in the extra period. For the third straight game in as many tries, the Pacers were victorious despite shooting below 39% from the floor. On the one hand, it is impressive that they have remained undefeated despite not playing well. On the other hand, they have now struggled considerably on offense in every game this year.

Still, a win is a win. And here is how each Pacer player performed.

Express your thoughts below in the comments of yell at me on Twitter @8pts9secs. (UPDATE: Added grades for Lou, Lance and Dahntay, and marked down Tyler.)

Indiana Pacers 98 – Cleveland Cavaliers 91 (OT)

DARREN COLLISON   5/7 FG | 11 PTS | 4 AST | +11
DC was exploited at times by a rookie point guard and you never want to see that out of a third-year floor general. But his efficiency can’t be disputed nor can the promise he showed running the offense much of the game.
PAUL GEORGE   0/4 FG | 2 PTS | 5 REB | +13 
George was really adversely affected by the early foul trouble. He never got into the game, though he did have one nice defensive sequence where he chased one of the Cav wings across the baseline and blocked his shot.
DANNY GRANGER   8/22 FG | 22 PTS | 7 REB | 4 AST
Danny shot poorly, but he seems to hit them when they matter. He hit two backbreaking threes in the final 2:25 last game and scored 9 of the Pacers’ 14 overtime points tonight. Also, something that might otherwise go unnoticed is a late challenge on Kyrie Irving’s attempted game winner at the end of regulation.
DAVID WEST   5/14 FG | 14 PTS | 10 REB | +2 
In only three games, West appears to have established himself as a leader and a go-to guy. Besides getting physical with Varejao, he hit two huge buckets in the clutch — one to tie the game with 4.4 seconds in regulation and another to put Indy up for good in OT.
ROY HIBBERT  7/11 FG | 17 PTS | 13 REB | 3 BLK | +15 
This is one instance when you can just look at the box score. Roy was the best Pacer on the floor for most of his 35 minutes on the court. He notched his third straight double double, scoring 17 on just 11 shots. Meanwhile, he swatted 3 shots. This is the consistent presence down low Indiana needs.

GEORGE HILL  6/15 FG | 15 PTS | 5 REB | 4 STL | -8 
You know you’re struggling when a 6-for-15 feels like manna from heaven, but Hill’s 15 point, 5 rebound, 4 steal performance showed much-needed signs that his game is coming around. He looked best when attacking the rim, showing quickness perhaps unmatched even by Collison. But he struggled running the offense.
TYLER HANSBROUGH  4/14 FG | 11 PTS | 12 REB | -6 
When he got his double double, I was thinking he should get a good grade, but his game was just so messy. That’s when I realized: he’s Keith Moon. They used to refer to him as “the one with the sloppy drums.”
DAHNTAY JONES  1/4 FG | 4 PTS | 2 BA | -3
Jones was back to his ball-dominant self but wasn’t effective at it. Synergy shows two failed isolations, but there was also a PnR where he ignored the screen for a foray down the baseline that led to a turnover. It’s good he tries to make things happen. He just needs to be less dribble-y about it.
LANCE STEPHENSON  0/2 FG | 0 PT | 1 AST | 1 TO | +1
I’m grading on a curve for basically the only real rookie on the team this year. Lance made two nice plays and had one turnover that showed how inexperienced he really is. However, he looked more comfortable with the ball in his hands, and the offense ran more smoothly with him at the top than it did with George Hill.
LOU AMUNDSON   2/2 FT | 2 PT | 2 REB | 4 PF | +0
Lou more or less did what he does: hustle, foul, provide big-body minutes. Hard to either credit him with too much or ding him too badly for being who he is.

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Frank Vogel Explains the Pacers’ New Emphasis on Offensive Rebounding

by Jared Wade on December 30, 2011 at 1:41 pm · 3 comments

“Smashmouth” has been the phrase du jour of Pacers Coach Frank Vogel from the minute his boss Jim O’Brien was canned last season. He used that change — and a few changes to the offense, mostly dumbing it down — to spark a late-season resurgence from a team that had previously been on a road to nowhere.

In the offseason, he instituted even more tenets of his own philosophy. Namely, he wants the team to be aggressive in the paint, attack the rim and get every board in sight. One way he has helped turn all this smashmouth talk from just rhetoric to action is by systematically emphasizing offensive rebounding.

It seems to be working so far, as the Pacers lead the NBA with 15.0 offensive boards per game and three of their bigs are in the top 15 leaguewide. Through two games, Tyler Hansbrough (11th in the NBA), David West (14th) and Roy Hibbert (15th) are all averaging 3.5 offensive rebounds a night. All this despite the fact that Jeff Foster, the NBA’s fifth best offensive rebounder since at least 1971, has yet to play a minute this season.

Hoopsaddict’s Ryan McNeil breaks down how Vogel has changed his scheme to emphasize offensive rebounding.

A big reason for Indiana’s ability to own the glass is due to the fact they tweaked their offensive sets to maximize their chances of getting offensive rebounds.

“We completely reshaped our spacing so that on 99 percent of sets two bigs are at the basket,” head coach Frank Vogel told the media earlier this week. “One will be on the post or baseline with the other rolling to the basket. We are designed to be a strong offensive rebounding team.”

Vogul expanded upon this philosophy last night before his team’s game against Toronto.

“Part of our smashmouth attack involves playing with size and strength,” Vogul told HOOPSADDICT.com. “We want out guards attacking the basket. We want our bigs playing through the post. This summer we shaped all of our spacing so that we don’t have very many lifts sets where we have a big out near the three-point line. We try to have one of our bigs along the baseline or in front of the basket at all times and the other one is rolling”.

In short, it sounds like the Jim O’Brien disciple is trying to erase the final traces of his mentor’s outside-in philosophy. Instead, he is molding a system that keeps the Pacers’ big men in their lane.

Both literally and figuratively.

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Early-Season Injuries Have Not Forced the Pacers’ Front Office to Search for Depth

by Jared Wade on December 30, 2011 at 1:12 pm · 1 comment

Jeff and Jeff (Foster and Pendergraph) have yet to suit up for the Pacers this season. This has left some to ask whether or not the front office is looking to fill out the roster, which only has 13 players out of a league-allowed max of 15 under contract.

They are not.

Team general manager David Morway said they’re fine with their current group of players despite center Jeff Foster (back) and forward Jeff Pendergraph (knee) being out with injuries.

“It’s only concerning if the two Jeff’s don’t get healthy soon,” Morway said. “We’re confident they’re going to be fine and we’ll be fully healthy soon. Certainly we have the flexibility to add another player if that’s something we want to do.”

Just in general, however, Morway did note that adding another player to the roster may become prudent at some point later in the season.

“We weren’t necessarily looking at going with just 13 players to start the season,” Morway said. “That was the group we felt most comfortable with. There’s a thought with this season and the number of games we’re playing in a short period of time that we might need to add a 14th guy at some point down the road.”

What would be really cool is if they did add a guy … and his name was Steve Nash.

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