in The Lebanon Reporter
Ok pacer fans, you got your wish. For the first time since 2006, your team is back in the playoffs. This is what you’ve been asking for. But what now? Is it all rainbows and sunshine from here on? Is Slick supposed to dust off the Boom Baby’s because the Pacers will suddenly play like its 1998? Will we see Conseco full for the first time since Jay Z left town?
What does making the playoffs really mean for this team? Does it signal an important mile marker on a journey back to relevance or does it simply mean the only place Indiana is heading is onto the altar to become sacrificial lambs for the Chicago Bulls?
I’ll be honest. I quit watching the Pacers when March Madness began. This being said, they are taking steps in the right direction but they remain steadfastly frustrating. Virtually every game this season saw them race out to a lead, remain über competitive for three quarters and then wilt faster than a plant potted in radioactive soil when crunch time arrived.
Through it all, Jim O’Brien’s tinkering with the line up, his jerking around of Josh McRoberts, his ultimate firing which birthed the Frank Vogel era, fans have been there; well somewhere, they haven’t been at Conseco, but I’m sure they’ve been somewhere wishing the Pacers well. The Blue and Gold had the worst attendance in the league this season which could be a sign of a bad economy or could simply mean people in Indiana have found other things to do. Lots of other things.
That being said, despite three losses by an average of 17 points, Indiana proved they could beat Chicago the last time they met. Beating them over a seven game series is a stretch, but winning 2 or 3 games would go a long way towards doing the one thing the Pacers franchise was founded to do: put butts in the seats.
The Bulls are tough. Carlos Boozer was a terrific off season move that brought not only defense but a polished offensive game as well. In Luol Deng the Bulls have a player whose best classified as a match up nightmare while energy and deadeye shooting from long range are provided by Joakim Noah and Kyle Korver respectively.
So just how do the Pacers avoid becoming a speed bump on Chicago’s road to the Eastern Conference Finals you may ask? The answer is found in Derrick Rose. The All Star point guard is not simply the spark plug for Chicago’s engine. He’s the starter solenoid, pistons and piston rings, crankshaft, rocker arm, flywheel, oil pump, oil trough and air cleaner. In short, he’s everything.
Stopping Rose is key to stopping the Bulls. Sounds easy enough, but if the Pacers can keep Rose out of the lane they stand a much better chance of beating Chicago. Averaging 27 points a game versus Indiana this year, Rose is most effective when he can find his way to the basket. In Roy Hibbert and Tyler Hansbrough the Pacers have an inside presence that can negate scoring at the rim, or at least make it very difficult.
That’s why this match up will hinge on Indiana’s front line. If they are committed to making it clear to Chicago that lay ups will not be an option during the series then Rose will struggle to repeat the 42 point performance he had last time out versus Indiana. If they aren’t going to stake control of the lane early however, the Pacers might as well start asking Manny Ramirez for retirement home advice.
© 2011 Eric Walker Williams
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