Pacers @ Wizards Indy Fan/Homer Perspective

[Fred The Hammer]

Last year the Pacers made me some nice coin in the playoffs but how do you get a read on a team featuring a guy that goes 0/0 and 28/9 in the next game? The thing is George Hill is def more important to Indy on the offensive side. When he's attacking the rim and putting up 15 ppg then the Pacers other guys get more clean looks but too often he's dribbling around on the perimeter and just as lost as Hibbert. I've come to realize Frank Vogel just isn't that good of a coach....he allows Stephenson and George to over dribble which leaves someone with a low % jumper with the shot clock close to zero. They have good bench scoring with Scola, CJ Watson, and Copeland but Vogel won't play Hill/Watson together or Copeland much at all? That lets the D pack it down low and not get punished that often from 3. Tonite I expect the Wiz to come out strong and prob get a double digit 1st half lead....Pacers prob whittle it down 2nd half but for some reason Indy doesn't seem to play with the same defensive effort until its a must win. If Vogel got his head out of his ass then Indy should win this series imo with experience and more depth on the bench. Does Nene or Gortat ever get a breather...seem like they play alot of minutes? I would think (hope) that Beal kid might get worn down too in a tough series....20 is pretty young! I don't bet against Indy but like Wash tonite and I will play the Over.

Not to mention Vogel often has Hibbert setting picks from 20-22 feet out....wtf is he going to do from out there? I get tired of watching that stupid shit

Wiz 99
Pacers 93

[sprewelllatrell]

Thats a good anyalsis. Ive noticed how difficult the pacers can make scoring look as well. The wizards flow is effotless compared to INDY. I lump Scotty Brooks in the same field as Vogel. They cant seem to run basic offensive sets effectively, way to much one on one.

[blstrick5]

This is the way I feel too. They tightened down a little for game two, but they won't come out with that sense of urgency tonight. I think Washington will score early and often and the Pacers won't be able to keep up.

[Djg401]

WIZ will make sure Hibbert doesnt go off the way he does and double team him early to Rattle him. Once he loses his confidence from the Start he shuts down for the rest of the game. Last game he started off hot so he became to confident and plus those free throws he made helps him "Smile" and not look as depressed. ANYWAYS I think WIZ will come out strong as usual and be pissed that they lost. Pacers will NOT be as energized and IF the Wiz Fans are Loud THEN the pacers will STRUGGLE.... I really dont see how they win any game in DC since they Struggled to Win 1 game at home and that was Mainly because WIZ missed a ton of free throws and WIDE OPEN Shots.

Expect a blowout early to just take the wind out of the Pacers

[Dmoneytx]

Hell of a write up, wow.. Rather than say "Over is a lock" or "Wash wins easy", you actually make ref to a LOT of imp factors that help "shape" the game.. Even if it doesn't pan out that way, your post was very well thought out. Thank you for taking the time to put out educated facts and analysis. Best of luck sir..

[Fred The Hammer]

Hell of a write up, wow.. Rather than say "Over is a lock" or "Wash wins easy", you actually make ref to a LOT of imp factors that help "shape" the game.. Even if it doesn't pan out that way, your post was very well thought out. Thank you for taking the time to put out educated facts and analysis. Best of luck sir..

Thanks....gl to you too

[spargament]

Tip of the hat for what reads like an unbiased objective writeup for a game you are emotionally invested in as an IND homer. As a Washington DC native, I gotta say I agree with you on virtually everything you've written. A couple of extra observations from a guy that knows this Wizards team better than
most:

1. John Wall's performance in Game 2 was very peculiar as far as his offensive contributions and decision making were concerned. One of the biggest improvements in his game this year that has gone unnoticed relative to others in media coverage is not JUST the evolution of his jumpshot (which has been heavily overstated), but rather his shot selection. He doesn't miss as many 3s because he doesn't take them with as much frequency, especially to date in the playoffs. 2nd half of game 2 was a step backwards in that respect, even moreso if you were just to focus on the last 5 minutes of the game. One sequence during which Washington grabbed an offensive rebound, kicked it back out to Wall who was at the top of the 3pt line, and Wall jacked the shot up virtually immediately even though Beal was available on the wing. I'll be the first to slam John when he plays poorly, but I will also say that he has matured at such a quick pace this year that I don't anticipate seeing him repeat these mistakes in Game 3. His defensive presence has been fantastic, and has accentuated the lack of production Indiana gets from the PG position. Which leads me to...

2.George Hill will continue to have a rough go at it, and expect to see Indiana continue to defer to Lance Stephenson to the ball, run the offense...his versatility on the pick and pop and dribble penetration make him more valuable than either Hill or Watson as far as distribution goes.

3.Hibbert will not continue his scoring binge. Not that that's difficult to predict, but a guy that averaged 10.8 ppg during the regular season and just over 11 for his career doesn't make his money as a high volume scorer. Washington's bigs played a little too casually for my liking in Game 2; Gortat's offensive production belies that. Expect Indiana to try to get him going early again in Game 3, but with a decreased level of effectiveness. Gortat has played BIG on the boards, and despite Hibbert's 28, Vogel and company cannot be happy about being outrebounded once again, and to see Hibbert only tally 9 rebounds despite getting many more touches (and being much more involved) than he's normally accustomed to.

4. Washington will revert to the high % shooting team they've looked like the in 6 games prior to Game 2 of this series. Wizards only made 5 shots outside of the paint in the second half, and shot beyond poorly at the charity stripe. Nene and Beal both need to and will knock down FTs with better consistency. Watch for tertiary players to get involved later in the game, as Washington's average distance shot has increased by nearly 5 feet in the last 5 minutes of both games of this series. The Wizards cannot simply expect that Ariza and Beal will combine to shoot the ball at a 70+% clip from long range, but they will surpass their slump from Game 2.

5. Much will be made about Paul George once again drawing Beal's assignment on the defensive end, but remember this: for as 'poorly' as Beal played offensively and as "impressive" as George was marking the second year man out of Florida, Beal STILL shot just a hair below 50% FG in Game 2, with a large portion of those shots being long range jumpers. Expect Beal to react with poise beyond his years, and for Sam Cassell and Randy Wittman to urge him to force George to commit fouls by taking the taller defender to the basket, and then use George's foul trouble (coupled with his significance to this Pacer team) to create better spacing around the 3pt line when George has to respect the drive.

6. The Pacers needed a terrible shooting performance from the stripe from the Wizards coupled with an unlikely outpouring of offensive production from Hibbert JUST to squeak by this Washington team by 4 points. Unless the Pacers can get improved production from Scola, Turner, Watson, Hill etc, Washington is the better team on paper, on the floor, and will win this series in 6 games.

[I/O]

Tip of the hat for what reads like an unbiased objective writeup for a game you are emotionally invested in as an IND homer. As a Washington DC native, I gotta say I agree with you on virtually everything you've written. A couple of extra observations from a guy that knows this Wizards team better than
most:

1. John Wall's performance in Game 2 was very peculiar as far as his offensive contributions and decision making were concerned. One of the biggest improvements in his game this year that has gone unnoticed relative to others in media coverage is not JUST the evolution of his jumpshot (which has been heavily overstated), but rather his shot selection. He doesn't miss as many 3s because he doesn't take them with as much frequency, especially to date in the playoffs. 2nd half of game 2 was a step backwards in that respect, even moreso if you were just to focus on the last 5 minutes of the game. One sequence during which Washington grabbed an offensive rebound, kicked it back out to Wall who was at the top of the 3pt line, and Wall jacked the shot up virtually immediately even though Beal was available on the wing. I'll be the first to slam John when he plays poorly, but I will also say that he has matured at such a quick pace this year that I don't anticipate seeing him repeat these mistakes in Game 3. His defensive presence has been fantastic, and has accentuated the lack of production Indiana gets from the PG position. Which leads me to...

2.George Hill will continue to have a rough go at it, and expect to see Indiana continue to defer to Lance Stephenson to the ball, run the offense...his versatility on the pick and pop and dribble penetration make him more valuable than either Hill or Watson as far as distribution goes.

3.Hibbert will not continue his scoring binge. Not that that's difficult to predict, but a guy that averaged 10.8 ppg during the regular season and just over 11 for his career doesn't make his money as a high volume scorer. Washington's bigs played a little too casually for my liking in Game 2; Gortat's offensive production belies that. Expect Indiana to try to get him going early again in Game 3, but with a decreased level of effectiveness. Gortat has played BIG on the boards, and despite Hibbert's 28, Vogel and company cannot be happy about being outrebounded once again, and to see Hibbert only tally 9 rebounds despite getting many more touches (and being much more involved) than he's normally accustomed to.

4. Washington will revert to the high % shooting team they've looked like the in 6 games prior to Game 2 of this series. Wizards only made 5 shots outside of the paint in the second half, and shot beyond poorly at the charity stripe. Nene and Beal both need to and will knock down FTs with better consistency. Watch for tertiary players to get involved later in the game, as Washington's average distance shot has increased by nearly 5 feet in the last 5 minutes of both games of this series. The Wizards cannot simply expect that Ariza and Beal will combine to shoot the ball at a 70+% clip from long range, but they will surpass their slump from Game 2.

5. Much will be made about Paul George once again drawing Beal's assignment on the defensive end, but remember this: for as 'poorly' as Beal played offensively and as "impressive" as George was marking the second year man out of Florida, Beal STILL shot just a hair below 50% FG in Game 2, with a large portion of those shots being long range jumpers. Expect Beal to react with poise beyond his years, and for Sam Cassell and Randy Wittman to urge him to force George to commit fouls by taking the taller defender to the basket, and then use George's foul trouble (coupled with his significance to this Pacer team) to create better spacing around the 3pt line when George has to respect the drive.

6. The Pacers needed a terrible shooting performance from the stripe from the Wizards coupled with an unlikely outpouring of offensive production from Hibbert JUST to squeak by this Washington team by 4 points. Unless the Pacers can get improved production from Scola, Turner, Watson, Hill etc, Washington is the better team on paper, on the floor, and will win this series in 6 games.

7. Washington is basketball stupid. Their coach is even dumber. As bad as Indy plays, Washington will let them back in the game and the series.

[spargament]

7. Washington is basketball stupid. Their coach is even dumber. As bad as Indy plays, Washington will let them back in the game and the series.

And, WELCOME to the 2014 NBA postseason. I know, I know, it must be shocking that it's no longer 2011, but fear not, even mainstream media has been able to readjust their perspective in less than two weeks. Thus far, Wittman has absolutely outcoached both Tom Thibodeau and Vogel. If Washington is basketball stupid, I'd hate to see where that leaves you good sir.

[Fred The Hammer]

Tip of the hat for what reads like an unbiased objective writeup for a game you are emotionally invested in as an IND homer. As a Washington DC native, I gotta say I agree with you on virtually everything you've written. A couple of extra observations from a guy that knows this Wizards team better than
most:

1. John Wall's performance in Game 2 was very peculiar as far as his offensive contributions and decision making were concerned. One of the biggest improvements in his game this year that has gone unnoticed relative to others in media coverage is not JUST the evolution of his jumpshot (which has been heavily overstated), but rather his shot selection. He doesn't miss as many 3s because he doesn't take them with as much frequency, especially to date in the playoffs. 2nd half of game 2 was a step backwards in that respect, even moreso if you were just to focus on the last 5 minutes of the game. One sequence during which Washington grabbed an offensive rebound, kicked it back out to Wall who was at the top of the 3pt line, and Wall jacked the shot up virtually immediately even though Beal was available on the wing. I'll be the first to slam John when he plays poorly, but I will also say that he has matured at such a quick pace this year that I don't anticipate seeing him repeat these mistakes in Game 3. His defensive presence has been fantastic, and has accentuated the lack of production Indiana gets from the PG position. Which leads me to...

2.George Hill will continue to have a rough go at it, and expect to see Indiana continue to defer to Lance Stephenson to the ball, run the offense...his versatility on the pick and pop and dribble penetration make him more valuable than either Hill or Watson as far as distribution goes.

3.Hibbert will not continue his scoring binge. Not that that's difficult to predict, but a guy that averaged 10.8 ppg during the regular season and just over 11 for his career doesn't make his money as a high volume scorer. Washington's bigs played a little too casually for my liking in Game 2; Gortat's offensive production belies that. Expect Indiana to try to get him going early again in Game 3, but with a decreased level of effectiveness. Gortat has played BIG on the boards, and despite Hibbert's 28, Vogel and company cannot be happy about being outrebounded once again, and to see Hibbert only tally 9 rebounds despite getting many more touches (and being much more involved) than he's normally accustomed to.

4. Washington will revert to the high % shooting team they've looked like the in 6 games prior to Game 2 of this series. Wizards only made 5 shots outside of the paint in the second half, and shot beyond poorly at the charity stripe. Nene and Beal both need to and will knock down FTs with better consistency. Watch for tertiary players to get involved later in the game, as Washington's average distance shot has increased by nearly 5 feet in the last 5 minutes of both games of this series. The Wizards cannot simply expect that Ariza and Beal will combine to shoot the ball at a 70+% clip from long range, but they will surpass their slump from Game 2.

5. Much will be made about Paul George once again drawing Beal's assignment on the defensive end, but remember this: for as 'poorly' as Beal played offensively and as "impressive" as George was marking the second year man out of Florida, Beal STILL shot just a hair below 50% FG in Game 2, with a large portion of those shots being long range jumpers. Expect Beal to react with poise beyond his years, and for Sam Cassell and Randy Wittman to urge him to force George to commit fouls by taking the taller defender to the basket, and then use George's foul trouble (coupled with his significance to this Pacer team) to create better spacing around the 3pt line when George has to respect the drive.

6. The Pacers needed a terrible shooting performance from the stripe from the Wizards coupled with an unlikely outpouring of offensive production from Hibbert JUST to squeak by this Washington team by 4 points. Unless the Pacers can get improved production from Scola, Turner, Watson, Hill etc, Washington is the better team on paper, on the floor, and will win this series in 6 games.

Good writeup but I wouldn't say Washington is better on paper. Indy's starting 5 took Miami to 7 last year in the EC finals and they've added proven scorers in Scola, CJ Watson, and Chris Copeland. Washington is young and it seems like Nene/Gortat get no rest....maybe a little from Gooden. Miller is really their only other bench option. I think the Pacers will wear them down later in the series but they can't go down 3-1. I wouldn't say George Hill is having a rough go either....avg. 15.3 (low of 14 pts) in his last 6 in which Indy is 4-2. Personally I would run Hill out there w/CJ Watson because neither is a true point and it lets one of them spot up....Stephenson gets out of control atleast 10 min/game anyway so Watson could have some of his minutes. Vogel doesn't often see what every Hoosier that grew up w/hoops sees so it doesn't matter anyway?

[spargament]

Better on paper:
3 of 5 superior starters are Wizards: Wall,Beal,Gortat.
One is a push as of playoff season: Nene=West
Despite Trevor playing like a man possessed I'll give you George>Ariza no contest.
Bench: Martell Webster, Andre Miller, Drew Gooden, Hustle Booker, Harrington, Temple, Seraphin slightly favors Indy w/ Scola, Turner, Copeland, Allen, Mahinmi (although through two games in THIS series the superior bench definitely belongs to Washington)
On paper IND wins coaching battle.

Overall that to me has Washington looking like the better team on paper (RIGHT NOW..obviously if the regular season was the focal point of the discussion, no debate that Indiana is far superior on paper)

You play Hill and Watson together for large stretches, they're gonna get exposed on both sides of the ball. My 2 cents. Will say one injury to the Wiz core makes this a KO for Indy, something stupid like Gortat tripping over cameraman could mess our season up fierce.

[Fred The Hammer]

Fans like us playing with X's and O's is sort of fun but doesn't mean anything. That being said....I think Vogel has more options then he uses. For instance when Hibbert disappears he could go small w/Watson, Hill, and Stephenson (monster rebounder as a guard) and make Washington's bigs pay on the break when they don't clean up on the boards. Instead he just lets big boy Roy flounder most of the time or plays West/Scola together who can't run. Its like he purposely plays slow when Indy has several greyhounds that can run! I'm not sure if its a prediction or just wishing....but good chance Wall and Beal's inexperience will cost them at some point in this series. It will be interesting but neither one is beating Miami anyway!

[jazzdrum78]

Can we all agree, the eye test tells us Wizards are far better than Pacers. Why are they not blowing them out then. Is it because they are young and if the game is close they will choke? So if the Pacers remotely decide to show up and play hard defense, Wizards will wither away in their youth.

[I/O]

And, WELCOME to the 2014 NBA postseason. I know, I know, it must be shocking that it's no longer 2011, but fear not, even mainstream media has been able to readjust their perspective in less than two weeks. Thus far, Wittman has absolutely outcoached both Tom Thibodeau and Vogel. If Washington is basketball stupid, I'd hate to see where that leaves you good sir.

Never happened. The Bulls had nothing left. Either talent wise nor did what was left have any energy.

Red Aurbach and Pat Riley couldn't do better with the mess Indy is in. Washington's talent has gotten them to this point. There coach sucks and the "team" doesn't know the first thing about the game.

[I/O]

And, WELCOME to the 2014 NBA postseason. I know, I know, it must be shocking that it's no longer 2011, but fear not, even mainstream media has been able to readjust their perspective in less than two weeks. Thus far, Wittman has absolutely outcoached both Tom Thibodeau and Vogel. If Washington is basketball stupid, I'd hate to see where that leaves you good sir.

In damn good shape!