The Indiana Pacers need to make some moves this off-season. With no cap space, that might be difficult. However, Larry Bird possesses a top-ten pick and several expiring contracts that he could turn into some much needed talent.
By: David Kay
Without sugar coating it, the Pacers just did not have enough talent to compete for a playoff spot this past season. They finished with their fourth-straight losing season and worst record in more than a decade. And that mark only looks somewhat not terrible because Indy ended up winning 11 of its final 16 games, which is the opposite of tanking late in the season to help your lottery odds.
Outside of Danny Granger who continues to develop into one of the most talented, versatile and unheralded wing players in the league, Indiana really has nobody who should be a starter in the NBA besides Troy Murphy and maybe Roy Hibbert. MAYBE. Rookie Tyler Hansbrough, who was supposed to bring toughness and energy to the Pacers in his rookie season, was hampered all year long by injuries and only played in 29 games. The point guard situation also remained a mess.
Where Indiana has been hurt the past few seasons is the awful contracts their average players are signed to which makes it practically impossible to trade them. Look at some of their salaries for last season: Mike Dunleavy ($10.5 million), Murphy ($11 million), T.J. Ford ($8.5), Jeff Foster ($6.1), Jamaal Tinsley (who hasn’t played a game with the Pacers the past two seasons, $5.5 million). All five players are still under contract for next season, and those overblown contracts have limited the team’s offseason flexibility which has resulted in below-average talent on the floor.
Check out the Pacers off-season needs and salary situation.
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