[absolutebest]

This is as stagnet as it get's folks. It's killing me. I would drop an article, but the subject matter isn't there so I'm going to ask my fellow Pacer fans a question:


Who is our starting small forward next year and why?

1. Al "Young Harry" Harrington
2. Ron Artest
3. Jonathan "JB" Bender


There is a good arguement for each player. Ron was the starter at the end of the season and really lit a spark under this team. Jonathan showed flashes of brilliance when he was given PT and his upside is as big as any in the "L". And Al was on his way to becoming Sixth Man of the Year and was a Most Improved candidate before the knee blowout. All three are working their asses off this summer as well. Who would you go with?

 

[R-Star]

Thats a real tough one. First off I for one think there is only room for 2 of them, which means Artest is gone in my opinion. Harrington is almost as good a defender and is way more of an offensive threat than Artest. Im not sure who out of Bender or Harrington I would start. IMO Harrington is sure to do a great job, but what about JB? He could turn out to be a good bench player who comes out and scores in bundles, or if we gambled and started him he could turn out to be something special. He could be a great player, he can dunk on anyone. And we will definatley need another reliable scorer as Reggies time slowley decreases. I guess I would say try JB for the first while and see how he does, then take it from there. Other thoughts?

 

[Crossword]

Ron Artest gets my vote. He's the best defender on the team and all he needs to do is work on his shooting and rebounding. He also needs to be able to control himself in pressure situations - i.e. kicking the ball vs. Toronto. Bender's got no fundamentals whatsoever, and Harrington's breakout season was last year anyway. Sure he'll improve, but I think Artest will have the best stats and the most contribution all around to the team of the 3.

 

[Sir I Gotta Go]

I say you keep all three. reggie is on his last leg. Once he goes, You have room to play all three. JB plays a little 2guard. You can't let artest go because he is the best 1 on 1 defender in the league and the only true Kobe stopper. Bender also needs to bulk up. If Bender bulks up he can play a little at power forward also. Artest can also play in the backcourt.

 

[R-Star]

You guys forget that Harrington is also a great stopper. And Bender just needs pt to improve.

 

[Crossword]

Bender got 21 minutes a game this past season. Not a lot, I know. But the sad thing he could have gone to college, improved his game, actually gotten real fundamentals, and he would be averaging more than 10 points this season at least, he'd get 30 minutes, be a starter, etc. etc.

Instead, he's a bust in the NBA struggling to get consistant minutes and has no fundamentals at all.

 

[R-Star]

The only reason people consider him a bust is because of Zeke. He would play Bender 30-35 minutes one game and he would put up around 15-5 and 2 blocks. Then the next game, to he would put him in for 4 minutes. How does that makes sence? How is Bender supposed to know what to do? Most people would reward the good work he did but not Thomas. Hes is the most erratic coach in history and needs to go. If you want to blame someone, put all the blame on him.

 

[clownskull]

you are right absolute best, this is the time of year when there is nothing to write about because there is no real hoops goin on. i haven't written anything in a while because of that. nothing to write. but the 3 position is an interesting question. i would say the spot is probably favoring artest at this time, but harrington will probably give him a serious run for the job. artest is the pacers best defender and easily one of the best in the nba. but harrington is no slouch either. i don't see bender starting because he still wasn't strong enough last year. but who knows summer workouts made a difference in benders build last year and he still has some more room to fill out his frame. if he can reach the thin but strong level of a garnett, then he could be a truly incredible guy to have around. he could then be able to play the 2,3 or even some quality time at the 4 if he can get a little bigger.

 

[absolutebest]

I'm going to go with Harrington. I think Young Harry starting is the best situation for us. I think he may be a 18/8 guy this year, I really do. So you have this...

Tinsley
Reggie
Harrington
O' Neal
Miller

You bring Ron off the bench for Reggie early on to save those legs for the fourth and JB for Brad. That way we can stick Artest on whoever is hot early for the opposition and let Al worry about scoring and REBOUNDING(where we really need hiom to be a hulk). You Play JB at the 3, his natural position and hope he can hang defensively. If that's the case he's going to have a good season. 13/6 a game or so. Al is strong enough for the 4 and JO can easily handle some minutes at the 5 in the center-deprived East. Any thoughts? Oh and Chad Ford said in his chat today that Indy still has a real good shot at getting Payton or Dre Miller.

 

[Sir I Gotta Go]

I don't have a link but I was on another site, and I saw they might do a three way deal that would send Artest, tinsley, and Bender to Cleveland. send Dre Miller and Bimbo Coles to Charlotte. and send Baron Davis and kirk Haston to the Pacers.

 

[Sir I Gotta Go]

And it works under the cap

 

[R-Star]

I realy dont want to give up Bender but to get Davis? Thats different. B Diddy and JO could be a killer 1/2 combo in this league.

 

[Crossword]

I would do that deal in a second. This team hasn't gone anywhere in the playoffs the past two years, and Baron Davis is already a proven star who's clutch. We never know if Bender will be as good as Baron. Davis is the real deal. I would hate to see Artest go, but we get Davis in return in this case. I'd do that deal any day of the week.

 

[R-Star]

No Doubt

That would make us the beasts of the east. No one in the east could touch us. We would have to pick up a backup sf though, unless we sign that ****a guy, who Im pretty warry about. I can't see this trade going down though, but then again you never know.