Author Archives: Kent Sterling

NFL Draft – St. Louis Rams likely to trade down twice and fill multiple needs

by Kent Sterling

Rams COO Kevin Demoff, GM Les Snead, and coach Jeff Fisher are going to make tonight memorable for Rams fans.

There is no weekend bigger in the development of an NFL team than draft weekend, and if any team is poised to make a leap in quality through its strategic allocation of resources over the next four days, it’s the St. Louis Rams.

In 2012, the Rams made the call to spin the #2 overall pick to the Washington Redskins in exchange the #6 pick and a second rounder in that draft, and $1 picks in the following two drafts. The final pick in that bounty will be used tonight – either as the #2 overall pick, or as trade bait for a team looking to move up.

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So far, the Rams have cashed that 2012 #2 pick in for starting DT Michael Brockers, starting CB Janoris Jenkins, starting RB Zac Stacy, starting linebacker Alec Ogletree, potential starting WR Stedman Bailey, and busts Isaiah Pead and Rok Watkins (now with Kansas City).

There is every likelihood that the Rams will trade this latest #2 pick to produce a slightly less impressive group of picks. There isn’t a player after Jadeveon Clowney is taken #1 expected to generate the kind of passion that would cause a GM to lose his mind and corrupt this team’s future like RG3 did in 2012, but whatever the Rams get, it will provide more help for a team that is more than one player away from catching any of the other teams in the loaded NFC West.

Since joining the Rams in early 2012, the brain trust of coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead have never drafted at the position they were assigned. In 2012, they spun RG3 pick into a #6 pick, which was then dealt for more picks including the #14 pick used on Brockers. In 2013, the Rams traded up from #16 to #8 where they landed WR Tavon Austin, and traded down from #22 to #30 to grab Ogletree.

One word that describes Fisher and Snead is “bold.” Like all other teams, the Rams know what they need and who the best targets to fill those needs are. If the Rams want an offensive tackle, and have Greg Robinson, Jake Matthews, Zack Martin, and Taylor Lewan all graded similarly, why take one at #2 rather than trade down to a spot between #6 and #10 where one or more will certainly be available?

So the Rams will answer the phone, await the deal they want, and pull the trigger.

The big question in St. Louis is whether the Rams will remain steadfastly committed to Sam Bradford as their quarterback. The former #1 overall pick in 2010 has been a disappointment in many ways for the Rams, and there is no current evidence that he has the makeup to lead the Rams to the playoffs or Super Bowl. Ranking Bradford among the top 20 quarterbacks in the NFL was a stretch before he suffered a torn ACL against Carolina.

With Bradford’s health a question mark, a $17 million cap hit in 2014, and mediocre results throughout his four years in St. Louis, the timing may be right to be aggressive and roll the dice on a charismatic quarterback like Johnny Manziel with the #13 pick. Bradford’s dead money is just over $7M for 2014, and $3.595M for 2015. That would put the Rams roughly $7M ahead for 2014 and $10M for 2015 even if they would cut rather than trade Bradford.

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The Rams are young, improving, and suffer from no lack of bold leadership. Because of what happens today, they will be in a great position to take a leap into playoff contention or continue to fiddle fart near .500 in a division that has represented the NFC in the Super Bowl the last two years.

Whatever happens tonight, I would be stunned if the Rams stand pat and draft second or 13th.

Roy Hibbert rises from the abyss with 28 points to lead the Pacers to series tie

by Kent Sterling

Roy Hibbert has been a tale of two centers in a 48 hour period. The all-star led the Pacers to a huge win tonight.

Win, lose, play well, play poorly, all anyone wants to hear about is embattled Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert. Less than three months ago, Hibbert was riding high at the NBA All-Star Game.

Now, Hibbert’s feast or famine postseason is all anyone in Indianapolis wants to talk about, and both local and national media has been more than willing to quench that thirst.

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In the Pacers locker room after tonight’s win, if the media throng asked 1,000 questions of players in front of their locker, all 1,000 were about the extraordinary play by their center which was an almost perfect opposite of what he delivered Monday night.

Two nights ago, Hibbert posted no points and no rebounds in 18 minutes. Tonight, 28 and nine in 33 minutes in the Pacers 86-82 win over the Washington Wizards to even the second round series at one win each.

Predictability is not exactly the calling card for either Hibbert or the Pacers. In another 48 hours, Game Three will be played in Washington DC, and God Himself would refuse to hazard a guess as to what might happen next.

When asked what changed for Hibbert to explain the sudden about face, teammate David West said that Hibbert seemed extremely focused both yesterday and today, “He didn’t say five words. He was aggressive and ready.”

This game was in doubt to the end, but with their backs against the wall, the Pacers put themselves back in the series. With a split in DC, home court advantage returns, just as was the case in Atlanta. Guessing which of those games the Pacers might win or lose (if any) is best left to fools who busy themselves reading tea leaves.

There are plenty of reasons for tonight’s win other than the Hibbert’s mind bending response to adversity the likes of which few professional athletes not named Chuck Knoblach, Steve Sax, Rick Ankiel, Mackey Sasser, or Steve Blass have experienced.

The Pacers committed only eight turnovers which led to a single Wizards point. The Pacers also outscored the Wizards in transition 10-1, and owned an 18-to-5 advantage in made foul shots. In short, a whole lot went right for the Pacers and the game was in doubt with a minute left.

One area the Pacers need to address is offensive rebounding. They were limited to four – tying a postseason franchise low.

And then there is the strange case of Marcin Gortat. Coming into this series, Gortat was thought by the uninformed to be little more than a Pero Antic clone without three-point range. His 21 points and 11 rebounds tonight tell an entirely different story. Gortat is a very skilled post scorer. He’s big, fundamentally sound, and very smart.

This may turn into a very interesting series, even if Hibbert is good for 28 and nine every game. Wizards point guard John Wall isn’t going to make only two of 13 from the field as he did tonight for the rest of the series.

Hibbert was the man tonight though. He played with determination, and good things tend to happen to players who commit to enforcing their will. He had some help in the form of emotional support from his teammates. West said, “We have his back. Everyone is this locker room supports Roy. We’ve all talked to him about how we need him.”

When Indianapolis Star columnist Bob Kravitz asked West whether he thought the criticism of Hibbert was over the top, West agreed with a roll of his eyes and said, “(Hibbert) is his own harshest critic.”

The Pacers and Hibbert found some temporary relief from the media onslaught that is laser focused on explaining the story of their ultimate failure prior to it happening.

Changing the narrative is what Hibbert did tonight, and three more wins just like it will get the job done.

We learned one more thing about this series tonight – it isn’t going to be a sweep. Whatever else might happen is anyone’s uneducated guess.

Tonight, the Pacers embraced a teammate in turmoil, and for one game Roy Hibbert was everything he hoped to be. Friday night will be yet another chapter in this incredible saga, and it could bring more of the same – or not.

Can’t wait to find out what happens next.

1070 the Fan’s Dan Dakich and Pacers’ Mark Boyle argument not driven by ratings or strategy; just honest disagreement

by Kent Sterling

Dan Dakich tells the truth. Mark Boyle tells the truth. When those truths don't intersect, it makes for great radio.

Dan Dakich (above) tells the truth. Mark Boyle tells the truth. When those truths don’t intersect, it makes for great radio.

1070 the Fan host Dan Dakich had a spirited discussion with Indiana Pacers play-by-play voice Mark Boyle today, and people on Twitter went a little screwy with talk of the motivation for the argument.

It was a cross media dispute – Dan on the radio and Mark on Twitter, but both sides were heard and prompted by the other.

As someone who knows both guys a little bit, I can tell you there was nothing strategic about the argument. There was no thought given to ratings as a motivating factor because neither Dan nor Mark care a bit about the audience numbers or Twitter followers.

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There is one measure that determines success for talk radio shows or talent, and that is money. Revenue matters. The people who respond to a Royal Spa or Today’s Dentistry spot determine the success of the show, not the ratings – which even the company that measures audience concedes are difficult to trust.

Radio management spends some time looking through ratings, but they are not the driving force in decision making on the micro or macro level – or at least it shouldn’t be. A very smart executive told me repeatedly, “Just do cool stuff.” If a show is relevant, fun, innovative, and honest, the ratings take care of themselves.

To think that Dan and Mark might conspire to stage a fracas to drive ratings or Twitter follower growth is madness. Both are repulsed by dishonesty.

There are a lot of people who sit around and concoct fascinating narratives for everything that happens in life, and those are people who tend to enjoy talk radio. They want any excuse for an answer for their question of the day, and so listening to hours and hours of people ranting is fun for them.

They want to believe that everything in life is manipulated because if it isn’t, randomness and disorder become the drivers of events. That makes us nervous.

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The reason for Dan and Mark achieving the success they have in media is their insistence on telling the truth in an entertaining way. Disagreement is good for radio, and it’s good for the soul. It’s dramatic and fun. Nothing wrong with Dan and Mark getting after it a little bit.

But disagreement should never be contrived. It must be honest or it can’t be trusted, and if it can’t be trusted, why would anyone listen to it?

Can’t wait for the next episode.

Indiana Pacers – Adios to Andrew Bynum, a million dollar bet that crapped out

by Kent Sterling

Very little photographic evidence exists to confirm Andrew Bynum’s time with the Indiana Pacers, and nothing additional will be forthcoming.

When on the cusp of a championship run, low risk/high reward moves like the signing of Andrew Bynum are justified.

With functional knees, Bynum is one of the top five centers in the NBA. Without them, he is a non-factor and bizarre side show.

The Pacers announced today that the experiment has come to an end, and that Bynum will miss the rest of the playoffs and no longer be with the team.

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Bynum played a total of two games after signing February 1st – both wins against Boston and Detroit. He averaged 11.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in almost 18 minutes, but received the most notoriety for reportedly getting a haircut during halftime of a game in which he was inactive.

Not sure whether the proper response for the haircut should be revulsion for a guy that selfish, laughter for an act that ridiculous, or applause for a guy whose time management is so keenly honed. Regardless, Bynum is now a ghost.

Fans who saw Bynum as part of the reason for Hibbert’s supposed psychological woes will feel validated by the move to dump him, and fans who hoped the guy could contribute once or twice during a series with the Miami Heat are disappointed.

As for Pacers president Larry Bird, he was economical with his words in commenting on the move, “We want to thank Andrew and our medical staff for trying to get the issues with his knee resolved. We wish him the best in the future.”

When the story for the oddest of all Pacers seasons is written, a chapter will be devoted to Bynum, but it won’t be very long.

Indiana Pacers – Without concrete expectations, fans now surprised by anything – or nothing

by Kent Sterling

Roy Hibbert will either play well or poorly. Guessing which only ensures the opposite.

The Indiana Pacers have done the almost impossible. They have defied expectations so many times that exhausted fans have thrown in the towel trying to predict what’s coming next.

Chicago Cubs fans expect to lose every time they walk into Wrigley Field. New England Patriots fans are certain they will win each Sunday. All other sports fans fall somewhere in between but toward the edges.

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So reliably unreliable have the Pacers been that fans have completely abandoned the notion of hope for a win or the feeling of dread prior to a predicted loss.

That is a rare outpost in the history of sports for a team that finished atop their division and conference.

Sure, there are 8-8 teams in the NFL with fans that have become ambivalent through mediocrity. Pacers fans are anything but ambivalent. They are passionate, but uncertain.

That’s what happens when a team they expect to win loses, and then wins every time they are expected to win.

Tonight, fans will pour into Bankers Life Fieldhouse for Game Two of the second round series against the Washington Wizards, and they will murmur about which Roy Hibbert with show up. They will also ponder Lance Stephenson’s focus – whether it will be on team success or how he can best position himself for the coming big contract that will set up his family for life.

There will be a lot of chatter about Chris Copeland, an extraordinary shooter who seems to do so many good things on the offensive end that must be on the floor occasionally regardless of how little faith coach Frank Vogel has in his defense.

Smart fans will wonder about the defensive adjustments Vogel will make to keep Trevor Ariza, this series version of Kyle Korver, from draining all six of his three-pointers as he did in Game One.

Others will drink their beer and cast doubt upon the date and time of Vogel’s ouster as coach. They won’t talk about how everyone thought he was a genius for the first three years he spent as head coach – only the last three months of confusion and mediocrity.

When the ball goes in the bucket for Hibbert fans will cheer, and when it doesn’t they will ponder the cause of his self-doubt. Did another Pacer do something with a female friend? Did he suffer a concussion when LeBron James fouled him hard on March 26th? And their boos will rain down if Hibbert falls down while turning the ball over.

By no one’s reckoning has Hibbert played well over the last two months, but no one in NBA history falls with less grace that Hibbert, so he looks especially awkward on these too frequent occasions. Fans love grace and are repelled by awkward

The Pacers will win or lose tonight, and beyond that nothing is certain.

People call this a must-win game, and while there is no logical argument to the contrary, this is not a logical Pacers team. They routinely defy expectations, and make fools of anyone trying to predict what will happen next.

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Like Mr. Spock says in “Star Trek IV,” when you remove the impossible, whatever is left must be the truth. The Pacers truth is that this series will not be over until the Wizards post their fourth win. Until then, fans can expect what they choose and accept that the opposite is damn likely.

Counting them out is foolish, and counting them in is even sillier. The only reasonable response to the Pacers postseason plight is to test your own mettle by trying to find a way to enjoy it.

Nothing comes easy for the Pacers – not losing, and certainly not winning. Like it or not, that’s the DNA of this group, so why not like it?

Kevin Durant named NBA MVP; defies heritage of self-serving blather with humble and heartfelt speech

by Kent Sterling

Today’s professional athletes get a bum rap for being self-immersed mopes unable to recognize the effect others have upon their lives. At least one of them does.

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant was named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player today, and he accepted the award by honoring virtually everyone in his life but himself – teammates, coaches, and he saved his mom for last.

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There were tears, I love yous, and meaningful compliments for those with whom he is trying to win an NBA title. Durant cried as he spoke about his mom, and it will take a half-dozen Shamwows to dry the puddles of tears that streamed down her face throughout the generous, heartfelt, and gracious speech.

Sadly, the speech was absolutely unique among others we have been subjected to over the years as athletes spend most of their time and effort patting themselves on the back.

Whether it was LeBron James stepping into an ill-advised spotlight to announce where he would take his talents, or Marshall Faulk waxing rhapsodic about his own sacrifices in an NFL Hall of Fame induction speech that was long enough to need an intermission, speeches by those very impressed with themselves far outnumber the kind of wonderful sentiments Durant imparted.

The Oklahoman dubbed Durant “Mr. Unreliable” last week, and the response from sponsors and subscribers was significant enough to require the editor to apologize. Now we know why the fans responded so angrily.

Durant claimed to have wanted only to be a youth basketball coach before earning a scholarship to the University of Texas and being drafted by the Seattle Sonics before the franchise moved to Oklahoma City, “My dream was to become a rec league coach,” Durant said. “That’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to stay home and help the kids out and be a coach.

“I loved basketball so much, I loved playing it, I just never thought that I could make it to college, the NBA or stand up here in front of you guys and be the NBA MVP. It’s just a surreal feeling and I’ve had to much help.”

Durant did briefly lapse into mentioning himself, but only to provide context to this being a community award rather than a personal one, “I put in so much work and so many people helped me,” he said. “I feel like we all won it. Our equipment guy gave me a hug today and said, ‘This is my first MVP,’ and I thought about that. And I said, ‘Yeah, this is our first MVP.’ I couldn’t have done it without the teammates, without the trainer. Everybody. We all just did this together.”

He spoke of the moment he, his mom, and brother hugged in the middle of an apartment without furniture they had just moved into, believing they had finally made it. And he called his mom “the real MVP.”

Parents tired from endless searches for athletic role models have finally found a worthy target, and the NBA finally has a star who behaves like a human being.

If you missed it, take a look below, and if you are a professional athlete, watch it and take some notes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww6wTQGFxZo

Toilet kills soccer fan, Cubs try to kill Samardzija’s arm, and voting for people we don’t know

by Kent Sterling

The most famous toilet related death is owned by Elvis Presley. Paulo Ricardo Gomes da Silva being conked by a thrown toilet is a distant second at best.

Soccer fans play for keeps in Brazil. Angry fans ripped three toilets from a stadium bathroom, and one was hurled from the stands, striking and instantly killing fan Paulo Ricardo Gomes de Silva. Obviously, this was terrible for Paulo, but perhaps worse for the family.

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“So sorry to hear about Paulo. How did he go – cancer, the old ticker, industrial solvent explosion?” they will be asked in Portuguese by countless friends and relatives.

None of the alternatives for responses are anything but embarrassing:

“A toilet fell from the sky and hit Paolo in the head.”

“Paulo went to watch soccer, and an angry fan bonked him on the noodle with a, um, toilet.”

“Happened exactly the way Paulo foresaw his demise – a toilet from the sky crushed his skull.”

Strangest part of the story is that authorities masquerading as middle school principals are banning all fans from future games until the guy (we assume it was a guy) who threw the toilet is identified and apprehended.

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Rick renter needs to protect Samardzija’s arm until it becomes another team’s worry.

The Chicago Cubs at 11-19 are going nowhere in the standings. They are almost certain to trade Jeff Samardzija, who is scheduled to be a free agent at the end of the season, so manager Rick Renteria’s choice last night to allow Samardzija to go nine innings while throwing a career high 126 pitches in an extra innings loss is bizarre and irresponsible.

I’m sure Samardzija wanted to stay in the game. He’s a competitor, so trying for his first win of the season would be a logical impulse. After all, no pitcher in baseball has thrown in worse luck than the soon-to-be ex-Cub.

In six of the seven starts this season, Samardzija has gone a minimum of seven innings and given up a maximum of two earned runs, and yet he’s 0-3 on the season. It stands to reason no winless starting pitcher has ever been named to the All-Star Game, but based upon his NL second best ERA of 1.62 and WHIP of 1.12, Samardzija certainly would belong.

If Samardzija continues to throw at this level, he will be the hottest pitcher on the market in July and will command a tremendous bounty of prospects in return. At season’s end, Samardzija will likely bring a bare minimum of $15 million per year given Edwin Jackson as a comparable making $13M.

Those great things for the Cubs and Samardzija can only happen if he is healthy, so extending him to 126 pitches for vanity sake is a reckless decision.

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This guy won’t win the primary, but when I voted for Fred Glynn, it’s who I pictured.

It’s election day in Indiana, so the fun of voting for a bunch of anonymous people for offices like comptroller and clerk is always a chore. While I try my best to be an informed voter, there are not enough hours in the day to figure out which busybody politician-wanna-be is going to be best at executing the duties of a city clerk.

The result is guesswork, and my version of guesswork involves a tip of the cap to people with names similar to people I either know or actors in shows I have enjoyed.

For instance, in the town where I live, a man named Fred Glynn is running for county council. I voted for him because his name reminded me of the late Fred Gwynne who played Herman Munster on “The Munsters.” If he wins by one vote, it will be because some dope recalled a similarly named sitcom star and giggled as he pushed the button.

Jeanette Winkler is running for clerk, and I enjoy the movie “Little Nicky” where a disciple of the devil sets a swarm of bees upon actor Henry Winkler. So I voted for her.

David George is running for city council as a republican. I know a Dave George who is anything but a conservative, so I voted for this Dave George as an annoyance to the Dave George I know.

As you might imagine, it takes me awhile to move through the ballot scanning for familiar names, and there is a lot of laughter that comes from my little booth. To this point, I am the only person I know who I have heard laugh while voting (with the exception of everyone who voted for Michael Dukakis in 1988 or Ross Perot for president in 1992).

IHSAA stirs formerly stagnant rabble as it tables proposal for changes to State Basketball Tournament

by Kent Sterling

The most storied and best formatted high school tournament in America was forever diluted in 1997, when school administrators voted to split basketball into four classes. Further change to it has been considered for over a year, but the IHSAA decided to hit the brakes before agitating the easily excited rabble that pines for a return to the past.

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It’s hasn’t been the same since 1997, and it will never be the same. Many miss the excitement of watching the same team need to win twice on the same day to win a championship, but that’s the way it goes. Things change, and not always for the better.

More champions doesn’t mean a better championship, but addlepated chuckleheads from 1A schools who wanted to legislate their way to a sectional title were impossible to argue with, so here we are with schools busing 50 or more miles to sectionals that used to be neighborhood wars.

That’s life. We needed to move on from the frustration that decision caused, and for the most part we have. Watching all four state championships is still a wonderful way to spend a day in late March, and unlike college and professional basketball, these games are for the kids – not the fans.

Winning is just as meaningful for the players today as it was back in 1973 when Norman Mukes and Charlie Mitchell led New Albany to it’s only state championship, when Glenn Robinson pushed Gary Roosevelt past Alan Henderson and the Brebeuf Braves in 1991, or when Scott Skiles shot Plymouth to the 1982 championship.

We are finally to a point when the seniors playing in next year’s tournament were likely not born when Bloomington North won the last one-class tournament.

So it makes total sense that the IHSAA would consider scrapping the four-class structure in favor of three classes – which is really a six-class tourney, but let’s set aside the complications that seem to attach themselves to every plan created by a committee of bureaucrats.

Why let the kids enjoy participating in the tourney that they grew up watching when it can be tinkered with by people with nothing better to do?

The one question that I have not seen answered about this new format is what problems it is created to solve. Oddly, that’s the only question I would like to an answer to.

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Earlier this week, the IHSAA decided to take some more time to gauge the passion among membership for a change, which means that they need to get a handle on how many calls will be generated by the aging population who loved the one-class tournament when they read about another change that falls short of THE change they covet.

Instead of grousing over the bizarre ruminations that occasionally emanate from IHSAA headquarters, high school basketball fans should embrace watching teenagers play a great game on winter nights – just like they did a century before. There is no difference in high school basketball today from late November through the end of February and what existed prior to 1997.

Enjoy that, instead of lamenting the loss of the one class tournament, or changing this imperfect system without a great reason to do it.

Indiana Pacers – Sad truth is that there is no answer for the riddle of Roy Hibbert

by Kent Sterling

Was it a foul by LeBron James that cause the dizzying downward spiral Roy Hibbert is enduring?

The sad thing about peeling back the layers of an onion is that eventually you run out of layers, and as embattled Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert sat on the bench scratching his head during last night’s loss to the Washington Wizards it was apparent that the only answer that makes any sense for his recent struggles is that Hibbert is who and what he is.

That’s not good news for the Pacers, who are built to function best when Hibbert is playing at the level that made him an all-star just three months ago.

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A report on pacers.com revealed a postgame meeting between Hibbert and teammates David West and Rasual Butler that was likely some form of intervention – a peer led defibrillation to Hibbert’s psyche meant to both challenge and support him.

How Hibbert responds is anyone’s guess – as it has always been. It’s a lonely life being 7’2″. The peer group is limited for a guy whose height served as a virtual sentence that he play college and professional basketball. The rewards are plenty, including the $14+ million Hibbert earns for enduring a minimum of 100 games each year on knees, hips, and ankles not built for such a pounding.

None of that should make us feel sorry for Hibbert. By our standards, he should be having a hell of a good time. Despite the nonstop work required to build his body and game, playing basketball should be a fun way to make the type of living reserved for business owners.

Some guys aren’t built to be the focus. When eyes are on them, they are repulsed by judgment – both positive and negative. Doubt creeps in. The fun is replaced by misery. With every concerned friend, teammate, and coach who tries to push a button, suspicion they will be unable to answer the challenges mounts.

Whether Hibbert is that kind of guy, I don’t know. It’s likely only Hibbert knows. The only evidence I see of a mostly introverted man is the complete absence of eye contact that exists when he talks to the media. While Hibbert is accessible most of the time and his comments usually reasonable efforts to communicate a relevant thought, his behavior suggests a complete lack of comfort in that environment.

When times are good, Hibbert can be gregarious, but when they go south he turns surly and churlish.

The continued psychological poking and prodding don’t seem to be helpful for Hibbert, and those who are not plagued by relentless self-doubt have a total disdain for a guy who can’t find the keys to unlock total aggression and readiness for battle. They refer to a guy like Hibbert as weak, but no one wants to find his way out of this funk worse than Hibbert does.

That is all assuming that Hibbert is one of those guys, and that the problem is not physical. After the win against Miami on March 26th – the game when Hibbert was fouled hard by LeBron James and hit his head – Hibbert has been a different player. Through that game, Hibbert averaged 11.4 points per game shooting 45.9 from the field and grabbing 7.0 rebounds. During the remainder of the regular season, Hibbert averaged 6.8 ppg making only 27.2% of his shots and netting 3.7 boards. In the playoffs, the averages are 4.6 ppg, 35.5%, and 3.3 rpg.

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There are plenty of reasons that Hibbert may have seen his productivity fall after March 26th, and while those close to him push buttons trying to reanimate the player he built himself into, the answer must come from within Hibbert.

Or his head was scrambled when he fell on it against the Heat. Who knows?

The only thing fans, teammates, and coaches can be sure of is that if the cure is time, that is one luxury the Pacers do not have.

Indiana Pacers lose Game One 102-96 – the yo-yo of emotions continues for players and fans

by Kent Sterling

The totally unpredictable Pacers gave fans reason to be despondent tonight. Wednesday? It could just as easily be glee.

It’s deja vu all over again for the Indiana Pacers, and not the good kind of deja vu. Watching this team play before their backs are against a wall is like a recurring case of the mumps.

For the second time in two series, the Pacers blew a chance on their home court to open a seven-game series with a win, and now will need to win at least one game in Washington to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

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Many of the same symptoms that led to mediocre performances against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round seven-game marathon of weirdness presented themselves again tonight. Roy Hibbert played 18 minutes and tallied goose eggs in points and rebounds, but did manage to collect five fouls. Those 50/50 balls the Pacers started fighting for in games six and seven against the Hawks were snared by the Wizards – particularly on the offensive glass where they created 17 additional possessions.

As bad as Hibbert was – again – David West was just that good with 15 points and 12 rebounds. Hibbert’s +/- was -17, but West’s was a stellar +11 in 38 minutes.

There are two logical reasons for the pathetic start by the Pacers that dug them a 23-10 hole from which they could never quite recover. The Wizards had five days off between series while the Pacers had one, and John Wall’s speed was impossible to be ready for.

In baseball, managers like to follow a soft tossing starter with a hammer time relief pitcher who brings triple digit heat. The difference between an 85 mile and hour fastball and one that hit 100 is stark. It makes a hard fastball look like it explodes out of the pitcher’s hand.

That’s what John Wall did to the Pacers tonight. It’s hard to believe that extremely well-conditioned athletes of the same size could move at such different speeds, but that’s Wall’s gift.

It also didn’t hurt that Trevor Ariza made all six of his three-point attempts.

The Pacers clawed their way back into the game a couple of times – once taking a one-point second quarter lead for 15-seconds, but every time the Pacers got close, the Wizards hit three or four shots to extend the lead back into their comfort zone.

Oddly, after this loss, I am completely confident that the Pacers will win this series. The Pacers missed six shots in the first quarter from within three feet, and for the first time in many weeks actually had some fast break opportunities. Both bode well for the remainder of the series.

Unless I see the Pacers lose the fourth game of this series and clean out their lockers while Washington moves onto the Eastern Conference Finals, I will not believe their season is over.

It’s hard to say which is odder – the Pacers weak play early in series or their resiliency with the season on the line. Strangeness is their calling card. No one ever knows which Pacers team is going to show up on a given night, but they seem to be very capable of winning when they need to – not when they want to, but when they NEED to.

This manic-depressive circus continues Wednesday night, and for most teams it would be an absolute must-win, but I wouldn’t put anything past these Pacers. I have no doubt of the possibility they could be down 2-0 but rally to take the series. Why not? The only thing we can be sure of right now is that their won’t be a Pacers sweep.

The rest of the possibilities are all still right their for the Pacers to take – or to give away.