2008 Woodie Awards
Commentary: Blueprint for Pacer turnaround
Andrew Young
Issue date: 2/20/08 Section: Sports
Ticket sales are down, morale resonating from the fans, team, and management, has declined, and there are more notches in the loss column than in the win column. What has happened to the once proud, controversy-free franchise that managed to show up in the playoffs year after year?
A game on November 19, 2004 against the Detroit Pistons in Auburn Hills, Michigan certainly did little to help matters. After a flagrant foul to then Piston Ben Wallace from then Pacer Ron Artest, a small scuffle among players broke out onto the court. Artest, attempting to either avoid more trouble, as he has claimed, or showing a display of his usual "I don't care" attitude, sprawled out on the scorer's table and took a rest while officials attempted to maintain order.
Then all hell broke loose.
After a cup of beer was thrown on Artest by Pistons fan John Green, Artest, and two other players began attacking fans in a futile attempt at finding the perpetrator. Many other mini-fights between fans and players broke out and, as NBA legend and announcer Bill Walton put it: "This is a disgrace."
In the following days, the league's biggest suspension in the history of the NBA would be handed out to Artest and several other players-nine in total-amounting to 143 missed games. But, as horrible and tragic as this event was, it serves only as an example to the true root of the Pacers' woes-a lack of quality players.
When one hears the term "quality player" thrown around in NBA circles, or any sport for that matter, it signifies a player of a sport who is both gifted athletically as well as a person of high moral character and self-discipline. Pacers President of Basketball Operations also uses this term quite often in describing players on the roster. The Indiana Pacers have plenty of young talent; they just lack the whole moral character/self-discipline part.
The solution to this massive web of problems lies on the shoulders of Larry Bird and Donnie Walsh to produce. However, as a highly experienced player of many General Manager modes on various NBA video games, I will attempt to provide Mr. Bird and Mr. Walsh with a blueprint for success; seeing as how they're too blind to see the problem areas of the team - or at least are refusing to acknowledge them.
A game on November 19, 2004 against the Detroit Pistons in Auburn Hills, Michigan certainly did little to help matters. After a flagrant foul to then Piston Ben Wallace from then Pacer Ron Artest, a small scuffle among players broke out onto the court. Artest, attempting to either avoid more trouble, as he has claimed, or showing a display of his usual "I don't care" attitude, sprawled out on the scorer's table and took a rest while officials attempted to maintain order.
Then all hell broke loose.
After a cup of beer was thrown on Artest by Pistons fan John Green, Artest, and two other players began attacking fans in a futile attempt at finding the perpetrator. Many other mini-fights between fans and players broke out and, as NBA legend and announcer Bill Walton put it: "This is a disgrace."
In the following days, the league's biggest suspension in the history of the NBA would be handed out to Artest and several other players-nine in total-amounting to 143 missed games. But, as horrible and tragic as this event was, it serves only as an example to the true root of the Pacers' woes-a lack of quality players.
When one hears the term "quality player" thrown around in NBA circles, or any sport for that matter, it signifies a player of a sport who is both gifted athletically as well as a person of high moral character and self-discipline. Pacers President of Basketball Operations also uses this term quite often in describing players on the roster. The Indiana Pacers have plenty of young talent; they just lack the whole moral character/self-discipline part.
The solution to this massive web of problems lies on the shoulders of Larry Bird and Donnie Walsh to produce. However, as a highly experienced player of many General Manager modes on various NBA video games, I will attempt to provide Mr. Bird and Mr. Walsh with a blueprint for success; seeing as how they're too blind to see the problem areas of the team - or at least are refusing to acknowledge them.
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