The Pacers have a lot of momentum and optimism heading into the 2011 season. One of those reasons is that they made the playoffs last season for the first time in long time. Moreover, they did under the helm of first-year coach Frank Vogel. Vogel is back, along with just about every player from last season, and is ready to make the next step toward being one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.
The city is also buzzing with excitement because the Pacers have a nice chunk of money to use on a big-name free agent. In the past couple of seasons, the Pacers’ front office has been working diligently to be in this exact situation. They have a young team that is poised to have a successful season but still have money to sign a great player.
The positions that really need depth are the center and power forward spot. As of the Pacers’ first official practice of the season on Friday, the Pacers only had three big men under contract. Those guys are Tyler Hansbrough, Roy Hibbert, and Tyren Johnson (a guy who will be dropped once the season starts). This will be Hibbert’s fourth season and Hansbrough’s third. Both players have really improved over the years, but Hansbrough hasn’t reached the level he needs to be at to be a dominant starter.
The Pacers’ front office was really chasing Denver Nuggets’ power forward, Nene. Nothing has been officially announced with Nene, but it seems like Nene will not be signing with the Pacers. Two other players the team could go after are Carl Landry and David West. Both are proven, starting power forwards who would greatly improve the Pacers frontcourt.
Now onto what the Pacers have actually done so far this season. They signed center Jeff Foster to a two-year contract. Foster has played his entire career for the Pacers and has said that he wants to finish his career playing for the blue and gold. It’s great to have Jeff who is a pretty good player and a good backup to Hibbert. The Pacers also released veteran guard Mike Dunleavy. Dunleavy has been a huge contributor to the Pacers defense the past four seasons, but there are plenty of players that can fill the hole Mike leaves.
Here is the Pacers’ current roster, as of 12/11/2011:
PG- Darren Collison
PG- George Hill
PG- A.J. Price
SG- Paul George
SG- Brandon Rush
SG- Dahntay Jones
SG- Lance Stephenson
SF- Danny Granger
PF- Tyler Hansbrough
PF- James Posey
C- Roy Hibbert
C- Roy Hibbert
The starting five will likely be Collison, George/Hill, Granger, Hibbert, and Hansbrough.
The schedule for the Pacers 2011-2012 season was also released last week. The Pacers, like all NBA teams, will play 66 games. 13 of those will be divisional games against Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, or Milwaukee.
Here are some notable games in the first three months of the season:
Dec. 26th- vs. Detroit
Jan. 4th- at Miami
Jan. 11th- vs. Atlanta
Jan. 14th- vs. Boston
Jan. 22nd- at L.A. Lakers
Jan. 25th- at Chicago
Feb. 3rd- at Dallas
Feb. 7th- vs. Utah
Feb. 14th- vs. Miami
I will have a preview of the Pacers season once all the wheelin’ and dealin’ gets done and we get closer to the start of the regular season.
UPDATE: Just minutes after posting this, the Pacers announced they have signed David West to a two-year contract. West will likely become the starter and move Hansbrough to the bench.
UPDATE: Just minutes after posting this, the Pacers announced they have signed David West to a two-year contract. West will likely become the starter and move Hansbrough to the bench.
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