The Pacers pounded the Magic 97-74 last night in what I would like to think of as a statement game. Not only did the Pacers show that they are clearly the better team, but they also showed that they are a great team, period. It may seem weird to say because the Pacers are sort of a rag-tag bunch of talent that is assembled around Danny Granger, but it’s true. The Pacers are a great team.
Indiana Pacers
News, information and tickets on the Indiana Pacers
The first week of the hectic 2012 NBA Playoffs are in the books and already there are plenty of story lines and drama that will likely ensure to become a very entertaining 40 nights to decide a champion. From the match ups to the injuries and records being broken, every game this weekend had worth watching and plenty of things to discuss: The Magic and Clippers are up 1-0, Derrick Rose is out and the Spurs and Heat look like the best teams in the postseason. Highlights from Weekend 1 include:
Orlando won game one of its playoff series with the Pacers–surprisingly–and I have to say it. It feels like a tease. Dwight Howard is out, but, somehow, the Magic prevailed, so, of course, they would get better with him, right?
Well, I guess, but, if this kind of tease is the thing that convinces the Magic that they need to keep him, I would be pretty concerned if I were a Magic fan. Basically, he’s been dragging this out for years with the Magic without once giving them any semblance of hope, and, I must say, him agreeing to stay another year is not hopeful.
The Lakers lost their third in a row, this time to the Pacers. However, it is not a fluke. The Pacers are starting to become something more than a nice story with a nice coach who came out of nowhere to get that job and do it well.
Roy Hibbert looks a bit different, he’s refined his game somewhat, and he was able to handle Gasol and Bynum last night. Remember when we thought that the Pacers were silly for trusting their franchise to Tyler Hansbrough? Yeah. They weren’t doing that. They were waiting for something better and hoping Hansbrough would be a nice get. Roy Hibbert is turning out to be a force on the inside.
Frank Vogel was never worried about the stereotypes that come with being an “interim” coach—not after he led the Indiana Pacers to their first playoff berth since 2006.
“They never told me I wasn’t going to be the coach, so I just tried to carry myself like I was,” the 38-year-old said Wednesday after the Indiana Pacers officially made him the coach.
Vogel didn’t have an easy job. After taking over for Jim O’Brien in the middle of last season, Vogel rallied the troops to a 20-18 record to close out the regular season.
While most eyes seem to be focused on Los Angeles and what the Lakers are going to do with the head coaching void left by Phil Jackson, the Indiana Pacers are on the markert for a new head coach as well.
For the Pacers, the short list as of now contains interim coach Frank Vogel, Mike Brown and Rick Adelman. Pacers President Larry Bird said Vogel, who took over coaching duties midway through the season after the team fired Jim O’Brien, is the front-runner. When Vogel took over the team in February, the Pacers were just 17-27; however, Vogel was able to help turn things around as the Pacers finished the regular season with a 20-18 record and qualified for the postseason.
Danny Granger needs to shut up. Here’s his tirade after getting bounced from the playoffs. He’s complaining about the most energetic player in the game who plays defense better than Granger plays offense.
“He pulled a cowardly move. He cheap-shotted a couple of my teammates, and one gets thrown out …”
“The refs never catch what he did … it’s cowardly. And I’m going to say something about it. I wanted to say something about it all the way to the game was over. I just don’t think the game should be played that way. You can play hard and fight and battle, but when you start cheap-shotting people it gets out of hand.”
The knock against the NBA playoffs has always been that the first couple of rounds always lack excitement because the outcomes are always so predictable.
Well, the same can’t be said for the 2011 playoffs. The majority of the series have been ultra competitive and a lot of lower seeds have surprised fans with their “never say die” attitude.
One of those teams is the Indiana Pacers, who extended their season today with an 89-84 victory over the Chicago Bulls. After fourth-quarter collapses in each of the first three games, Danny Granger led the Pacers with 24 points to help the team earn their first playoff win since 2006.
For as close as the Indiana Pacers have allegedly been keeping their opening-round series against the Chicago Bulls, last time I checked, close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.
What that translates into is a Bulls 3-0 series lead.
Despite the Pacers staying within striking distance for most of the game, they still had no answer for Derrick Rose, who had 23 points to lead the Bulls to an 88-84 victory.
Despite Rose’s 23 points, he made just 4 of 18 shots in the game and at times was pummeled by Indiana‘s Paul George and Dahntay Jones. Ultimately, the Pacers could have had all five guys on Rose and he still would have managed to put points on the board.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Game 1 – Sat April 16, Indiana at Chicago, 1:00 p.m. ET, ESPN/ESPN3D
Game 2 – Mon April 18, Indiana at Chicago, 9:30 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 3 – Thu April 21, Chicago at Indiana, 7:00 p.m. ET, NBA TV
Game 4 – Sat April 23, Chicago at Indiana, 2:30 p.m. ET, TNT
Game 5 * Tue April 26, Indiana at Chicago, TBD, TBD
Game 6 * Thu April 28, Chicago at Indiana, TBD, TBD
Game 7 * Sat April 30, Indiana at Chicago, TBD, TNT
Miami vs. Philadelphia
