NBA Franchise of the Year: Passion. Pride. Pacers.

[mfbmike]

Another Futile Fight To Finish For Pacers



You had plenty of options to choose from in deciding why the Indiana Pacers aren't a good defensive team in their 137-101 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers lastnight.

There were numerous times Kobe Bryant showed off his offensive repertoire on his way to a game high 24 points.

Or it could have been the countless times Lamar Odom flirted with the Pacers by teasing them with the ball before driving and dishing off for an assist.



That's how bad things are for the Pacers, and that's why it's probably fitting that they have started this road trip by giving up another big scoring game.

"You can't pick your spots to play defense," Pacers center Chris Kaman said. "You have to play defense the whole game to be a good team. Our record reflects that we're not playing defense consistently. Until we do that, our record is going to continue to be the way it is."

"It has to be a commitment on our part," said Pacers gaurd T.J Ford, who scored 14 points. "We talk a lot and say we're going to do it, but when it comes down to it, we don't do it. We do it on occasion, but that's not going to win enough games. Once we get that commitment we'll be a much better team."

Not even Danny Granger could have helped the Pacers from being a horrible defensive team against Los Angeles.

There was some good news to come out of Los Angeles though, thankfully.

Pacers Head Coach Jim O'Brien said Marquis Daniels may make his return from a separated shoulder sometime within the next week. A lot of things will hinge on how he does in practices over the next couple of days.

The Pacers need some kind of spark because getting blown out was the last thing they needed to happen during a long road trip.

The Pacers face the Golden State Warriors at the Oracle tonight. The last time the Pacers faced the Warriors, it was a blowout in the favor of the Pacers, 120-98 in Granger's first game back from that strained achilles tendon. Tonight, the Pacers will be without their star forward.

[mfbmike]

tough game, the lakers scored a ridiculous amount

dawg 48pts in the 4th is crazy they were busting yo ass to the white meat

48 points? That's 2 Quarters right there in 1. Wish you luck the rest of these games without Granger.

I couldn't get a stop. They jumped out by 30 points on me before putting in reserves in the 3rd quarter and only then was able to get stops and pull it to within 12-15. Then the starters came back in and raped me with no lube in the 4th. To say that these games are hard without Granger is an understatement. Brandon Rush struggled in his first start this year for me, lol. Ford struggled, entire team struggled really. Funny how of all people who actually could score consistently for me, it would be Dermarr Johnson.

Hope you guys liked the article.

haha oh man...Time to get a new trainer!

Is that what is wrong? lol, god damn injuries!

[mfbmike]

Pacers Weekly Stats Update:

Starters:


Reserves:



(Red name denotes currently injured)



Players Of The Week:

Western Conference


Steve Nash - Phoenix Suns

Eastern Conference


Lebron James - Cleveland Cavaliers

Weekly Conference Standings Update:



1. (27-8)

2. (22-11)

3. (22-12)

4. (24-15)

5. (21-15)

6. (21-15)

7. (18-15)

8. (18-20)

9. (17-19)

10. (17-20)

11. (17-20)

12. (16-20)

13. (16-22)

14. (13-24)

15. (12-26)



1. (21-14)

2. (21-14)

3. (21-14)

4. (20-15)

5. (20-16)

6. (21-17)

7. (19-18)

8. (17-19)

9. (17-19)

10. (16-21)

11. (15-23)

12. (15-24)

13. (14-23)

14. (13-22)

15. (13-24)

[mfbmike]

Holding on to that 8th spot boss. Following Mike.

I don't know how long that will last. lol. :/

Bobcats suprisingly bad, usually they rip it up in peoples chises.

No J Rich kinda fux0rs them.

[mfbmike]

Pacers Falter In 2nd Half And Endure 3rd Straight Loss

Starting Lineups:
T.J. Ford PG Monta Ellis
Brandon Rush SG Stephen Jackson
Wally Szczerbiak SF Corey Maggette
Chris Wilcox PF Brandan Wright
Chris Kaman C Andris Biedrins

(17-19) 108 @ 118 (18-20)


T.J. Ford put up an MVP-caliber performance as he scored a team high 33 points to go with 11 assists and 5 steals.

Top Performers:
Player Of The Game:

Corey Maggette

Quote Of The Game:
"T.J. played incredibly hard out there tonight. He's always been the one to step up when Danny's gone down and he did the same tonight. Unfortunately, it just wasn't enough for us to get this win. It's hard to win games when you let the opposing team shoot 55% from the field." - Pacers GM Larry Bird

Next Game:

[Yawkey Way]

the loss of Granger is really hurting your team right now on both sides of the ball.

[mfbmike]

the loss of Granger is really hurting your team right now on both sides of the ball.

You have no idea. Wally and Rush can hit shots but they are hardly as clutch or consistent as Granger is. Not to mention they both having hard time keeping up with Corey.

he saw that comin im sure

I actually thought this would be 1 of the games I could take without Granger. I blew them out with Granger but couldn't keep it together in the 2nd half unfortunately this time around.

[mfbmike]

Okur Racks Up 22 Rebounds To Send Pacers Home With 4th Straight Loss

Starting Lineups:
T.J. Ford PG Deron Williams
Brandon Rush SG Ronnie Brewer
Wally Szczerbiak SF Andrei Kirilenko
Chris Wilcox PF Carlos Boozer
Chris Kaman C Mehmet Okur

(17-20) 107 @ 118 (17-20)


The Pacers backcourt combined for nearly half of the Pacers points. Unfortunately, the Pacers frontcourt couldn't do anything right in their loss to the Jazz.

Top Performers:
Player Of The Game:

Mehmet Okur

Quote Of The Game:
"I don't know if our guys are tired or what because this is the last game of our road trip, but tonight, we were spectators out there anytime a shot came off of that rim. They killed us on second chance opportunities because we didn't box out. You aren't going to win many games if you allow the other team almost 20 more field goal attempts than you." - Pacers Coach Jim O' Brien

Next Game:

[mfbmike]

Daniels Set To Make Return Tonight As Pacers Host Pistons



It was 2 weeks ago when Marquis Daniels dove into the stands at the Fedex Forum in Memphis after a loose ball. Once Marquis managed to get himself up with the help of a few courtside fans, it was obvious he was in pain and would leave the game.

Turns out Marquis had separated his left shoulder and would be forced to miss 2 weeks of play.

Daniels, currently the Pacers best scorer off the bench, has paced the Pacers sidelines for the past couple of weeks and has seen the good and the bad. The good being the winning streak the Pacers were able to put together with the help of a healthy Danny Granger. And the bad, the high scoring losses without the help of Granger.

Daniels will make his return to the starting lineup while Granger continues to nurse a similar injury to the one that has kept Daniels out. Wally Szczerbiak will continue to start at the 3 spot in the meantime as well and Brandon Rush, who finally broke out of a slump against the Jazz and scored 30 in a losing effort, will once again assume 6th man duties.

The Pacers look to snap a 4 game skid tonight as they host the Detroit Pistons who currently hold a 2-0 season series lead over the Pacers with 2 wins at Auburn Hills.

[MRN]

Nice, good to see that Daniels is back, but now you wait for Granger.

You will probably have a tough time beating Detroit without your star though.

[mfbmike]

Wow man... love your style in doing this.

Typo i think, in the player of the week it says steve nash got 9 blocks

maybe he did get 9 blocks

lol nah, thanks for pointing that out. Hit 9 instead of 0. And thanks for the compliment/following. :happy:

[mfbmike]

Pacers Snap 4 Game Skid With Homecoming Win Against Pistons

Starting Lineups:
T.J. Ford PG Allen Iverson
Marquis Daniels SG Richard Hamilton
Wally Szczerbiak SF Tayshaun Prince
Chris Wilcox PF Jason Maxiell
Chris Kaman C Rasheed Wallace

(17-21) 106 vs 98 (22-14)


Chris Kaman uses his size to his advantage, rising up for a turnaround jumper over Allen Iverson.

Top Performers:
Player Of The Game:

Marquis Daniels

Quote Of The Game:
"We got out in front early and managed to keep them from getting into a flow offensively. We took care of the ball, rebounded well. We just played solid, fundamental basketball out there to get this win tonight. Feels good to be home again." - Wally Szczberbiak

Next Game:

[MRN]

Great win, good to see you beat the pistons.

[jags224]

great job by Daniels for his first game back, hopefully he can pick up some of the slack until danny comes back

[LC AAU]

Nice win, finally snapped that streak.