Dont sleep on Indiana.

[housecall]

I have been waiting for a thread like this to pop up because i have been sorta keeping up with the new look Pacers.They are a lot better than last season mainly because Hibbert has developed into a very good center...he lead them in pts.,rebounds,and assist in their win over the Lakers last night.Also with D.Granger,M.Dunleavy,T.Hanbrough all being healthy at the same time has helped them also. Both Collision and Rush are playing well.J.Posey's stat line doesn't reflect his contribution.JP has hit some timely 3's so far this season.

Last night was the first time in a long time Pau and Odom looked lost.Hibbert basically shut Pau out.Hibbert outplayed Pau most of the game.I know when Bynum returns he will be the starting c but its a big step for Hibbert to come this far.  

[Chris]

I love this Indiana team.  They have been very dangerous for a few years, and have been the most likely lottery team to knock off a contender basically since Jim Obrien showed up.  Unfortunately, they could never string together wins because they had no consistency at the point and down low. 

Hibbert has been very up and down the last few years, and Murphy was never someone you could rely on being in the lineup.  But now, it appears that Hibbert is making the leap, and giving them the consistent inside presence that they were missing.

More important however is the consistency Collison provides at the point.  I personally think he became overrated last year after putting up incredible numbers in place of Paul.  However, he is still a tremendously reliable and very efficient player, who is basically perfect for Jim OBrien's system.  He provides stability at a position that was in constant flux, either by injury, or off the court issues. 

Combine those upgrades with a legitimate second tier star in Granger, and a handful of excellent role players (Rush, Dunleavy, Posey, and even McRoberts), and you have a team poised to break out. 

I think they could really be like last years Bucks...and if they pull the right strings may have an even brighter future, because of their core of Granger, Hibbert, and Collison.

[Edgar]

Dunleavy rocks.

binkie

[xmuscularghandix]

I’ve always liked his teams.

I'm not afraid of his teams, though.  The scrappy defensive approach can be offset by making the extra pass, they help so much there's always an open man, and the C's are probably best in the league at getting the ball to the open guy.  That's why Jason Kidd used to kill us - I've no doubt in my mind that Rondo can do the same against them.

They're also (again) one of the teams that shoots the most 3's, despite being middle-of-the-pack in terms of making them.  Live by the 3, die by the 3 - get hot and you can beat anyone, but it's hard to sustain that over a seven game series.  

Oh definitely, it’s a good gameplan for upsetting a good team in one game. Over a series your really dependent on three’s and forcing TO’s...

[LakersFan_33]

They're a nice team, but let's not go overboard here. Lakers had a severe off night, and you don't even need to have purple and gold goggles to realize that. Pau and Odom are slumping a little bit lately, but much of that is due to the fact that Ratliff and Bynum are injured, leaving Pau/Odom to be the only ones left to play at the PF/C positions.

But I will give them some credit. They have a very nice core in Collison, Granger, and Hibbert, and some good role players. They might be able to scratch the 8th seed, but I doubt it.

[housecall]

They're a nice team, but let's not go overboard here. Lakers had a severe off night, and you don't even need to have purple and gold goggles to realize that. Pau and Odom are slumping a little bit lately, but much of that is due to the fact that Ratliff and Bynum are injured, leaving Pau/Odom to be the only ones left to play at the PF/C positions.

But I will give them some credit. They have a very nice core in Collison, Granger, and Hibbert, and some good role players. They might be able to scratch the 8th seed, but I doubt it.

And lets not downplay what affect Hibbert had on Pau in that game.Regardless of the Lakers backup situations the Pacers beat them at all phases of the game for most of the four quarters.When KG was playing at75%(health)last season we didn't use it as an excuse when Pau outplayed him.So lets give credit where credit is due.Hibbert was the better big man on the court that game...lets leave the excuses out of it.It was one of those nights when Kobe's fourth quarter scoring surge didn't get them over the hump.

[Chris]

They're a nice team, but let's not go overboard here. Lakers had a severe off night, and you don't even need to have purple and gold goggles to realize that. Pau and Odom are slumping a little bit lately, but much of that is due to the fact that Ratliff and Bynum are injured, leaving Pau/Odom to be the only ones left to play at the PF/C positions.

But I will give them some credit. They have a very nice core in Collison, Granger, and Hibbert, and some good role players. They might be able to scratch the 8th seed, but I doubt it.

Absolutely.  I think there are only 1 or 2 teams in the league that can hang with the Lakers when they are clicking on all cylinders.  But Indy has shown over the last few years that they are the best in the business at taking advantage of the top teams when they let their guards down...and now, they are also taking care of some of the teams around their own level as well.

I think they are a legit candidate for a 5th or 6th seed this year, and could leap over teams like Milwaukee and Atlanta to do it. 

[LakersFan_33]

They're a nice team, but let's not go overboard here. Lakers had a severe off night, and you don't even need to have purple and gold goggles to realize that. Pau and Odom are slumping a little bit lately, but much of that is due to the fact that Ratliff and Bynum are injured, leaving Pau/Odom to be the only ones left to play at the PF/C positions.

But I will give them some credit. They have a very nice core in Collison, Granger, and Hibbert, and some good role players. They might be able to scratch the 8th seed, but I doubt it.

And lets not downplay what affect Hibbert had on Pau in that game.Regardless of the Lakers backup situations the Pacers beat them at all phases of the game for most of the four quarters.When KG was playing at75%(health)last season we didn't use it as an excuse when Pau outplayed him.So lets give credit where credit is due.Hibbert was the better big man on the court that game...lets leave the excuses out of it.It was one of those nights when Kobe's fourth quarter scoring surge didn't get them over the hump.

I gave them credit in the second paragraph. Maybe you're not giving excuses now, but I'm sure you've used them many times before, including most people on this site. I don't think you can say that people didn't use KG's health as an excuse when the Celtics were struggling.

Pau is in a slump...Since even Darko outplayed him, I'm not putting too much stock into Hibbert, other than he's an improved player. The fact that Pau is arguably the best PF in the game, and that Hibbert does not hold a candle to him, is not questioned by those with basketball knowledge.

[BballTim]

The fact that Pau is arguably the best PF in the game, and that Hibbert does not hold a candle to him, is not questioned by those with basketball knowledge.

  Interesting, but Pau's per48 numbers (from 82games) are 26/15/5 with 2 turnovers, with opponents getting 18/14/3 with 3 turnover. Hibbert gets 26/15/5 with 4 turnovers while allowing 18/12/2 with 3 turnovers. Pau has a higher fg% and commits fewer turnovers but those seem to be the only real differences between them statistically. Pau's the better player, but "Hibbert doesn't hold a candle to him" might be falling by the wayside. Not that I've seen him play a lot, just surprised at how close their numbers are.

[wdleehi]

Hibbert is what you want out of young player.


He has NBA level skills and size.

He is coach-able.

He has improved each season.

[LakersFan_33]

The fact that Pau is arguably the best PF in the game, and that Hibbert does not hold a candle to him, is not questioned by those with basketball knowledge.

  Interesting, but Pau's per48 numbers (from 82games) are 26/15/5 with 2 turnovers, with opponents getting 18/14/3 with 3 turnover. Hibbert gets 26/15/5 with 4 turnovers while allowing 18/12/2 with 3 turnovers. Pau has a higher fg% and commits fewer turnovers but those seem to be the only real differences between them statistically. Pau's the better player, but "Hibbert doesn't hold a candle to him" might be falling by the wayside. Not that I've seen him play a lot, just surprised at how close their numbers are.

Hibbert is peaking and overachieving at this point in time, and those numbers are from too SMALL of a sample size. I would love to say that Shannon Brown is a great player (shooting 49%; 47.5% from three), and is a dead-eye 3-point shooter because of his great start, when in reality, I expect his numbers to level off, as well. His numbers/production will most certainly decline soon.

[BballTim]

The fact that Pau is arguably the best PF in the game, and that Hibbert does not hold a candle to him, is not questioned by those with basketball knowledge.

  Interesting, but Pau's per48 numbers (from 82games) are 26/15/5 with 2 turnovers, with opponents getting 18/14/3 with 3 turnover. Hibbert gets 26/15/5 with 4 turnovers while allowing 18/12/2 with 3 turnovers. Pau has a higher fg% and commits fewer turnovers but those seem to be the only real differences between them statistically. Pau's the better player, but "Hibbert doesn't hold a candle to him" might be falling by the wayside. Not that I've seen him play a lot, just surprised at how close their numbers are.

Hibbert is peaking and overachieving at this point in time, and those numbers are from too SMALL of a sample size. I would love to say that Shannon Brown is a great player (shooting 49%; 47.5% from three), and is a dead-eye 3-point shooter because of his great start, when in reality, I expect his numbers to level off, as well. His numbers/production will most certainly decline soon.

  Kind of like Pau's production is declining? Oh, sorry, that's just a slump...

[Chris]

The fact that Pau is arguably the best PF in the game, and that Hibbert does not hold a candle to him, is not questioned by those with basketball knowledge.

  Interesting, but Pau's per48 numbers (from 82games) are 26/15/5 with 2 turnovers, with opponents getting 18/14/3 with 3 turnover. Hibbert gets 26/15/5 with 4 turnovers while allowing 18/12/2 with 3 turnovers. Pau has a higher fg% and commits fewer turnovers but those seem to be the only real differences between them statistically. Pau's the better player, but "Hibbert doesn't hold a candle to him" might be falling by the wayside. Not that I've seen him play a lot, just surprised at how close their numbers are.

Hibbert is peaking and overachieving at this point in time, and those numbers are from too SMALL of a sample size. I would love to say that Shannon Brown is a great player (shooting 49%; 47.5% from three), and is a dead-eye 3-point shooter because of his great start, when in reality, I expect his numbers to level off, as well. His numbers/production will most certainly decline soon.

Obviously the Lakers game was one of his better performances of the season, but there is nothing fluky about the way Hibbert is playing this season...and I would argue that he is still getting better, rather than peaking or overachieving.

When you look at the way his career has progressed, he has gotten better steadily every year.  As his body and game has developed, his numbers and affectiveness have also grown.  This is pretty typical of big men like Hibbert. 

Given his size, and skill level, I see Hibbert continuing to improve a bit more, and becoming one of the best Centers in the league for many years.

And this is coming from someone who thought his absolute ceiling was Brendan Haywood when he came out of school, just because I didn't think he could transform his body the way he has.

[MBz]

I am another one who expected Hibbert to be an absolute bust in the NBA, but he's turned himself into a very good player.  I really like this Indiana team for the future.  They are a very young squad with a lot of talent.  Hopefully we can start to see the Darren Collison of last year soon and this team could really make some noise.  We all knew about Granger, but I am surprised by how well the rest of this team is playing.  Rush and Dunleavy have been playing great basketball.  Hansbrough, Ford and Posey all have been contributing off the bench.  They have a pretty solid squad.  I don't think they have a chance to be better than the C's or the Magic, but I think they will be somewhat like the Bucks of last year. 

[LakersFan_33]

The fact that Pau is arguably the best PF in the game, and that Hibbert does not hold a candle to him, is not questioned by those with basketball knowledge.

  Interesting, but Pau's per48 numbers (from 82games) are 26/15/5 with 2 turnovers, with opponents getting 18/14/3 with 3 turnover. Hibbert gets 26/15/5 with 4 turnovers while allowing 18/12/2 with 3 turnovers. Pau has a higher fg% and commits fewer turnovers but those seem to be the only real differences between them statistically. Pau's the better player, but "Hibbert doesn't hold a candle to him" might be falling by the wayside. Not that I've seen him play a lot, just surprised at how close their numbers are.

Hibbert is peaking and overachieving at this point in time, and those numbers are from too SMALL of a sample size. I would love to say that Shannon Brown is a great player (shooting 49%; 47.5% from three), and is a dead-eye 3-point shooter because of his great start, when in reality, I expect his numbers to level off, as well. His numbers/production will most certainly decline soon.

  Kind of like Pau's production is declining? Oh, sorry, that's just a slump...

You're talking like his production was declining for months or years, when it's only been a couple of weeks (other than that, he was clearly the best big in the league). Check his stats just for this season. He's putting up 21.5 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks a game. That's declining?