LAS VEGAS â€" The Indiana Pacers are at a crossroads.
By Michael Conroy, AP
Kevin Pritchard, left, is the Pacers' new general manager as Larry Bird, right, steps down as team president. Bird is replaced by Donnie Walsh, who is not pictured.
By Michael Conroy, AP
Kevin Pritchard, left, is the Pacers' new general manager as Larry Bird, right, steps down as team president. Bird is replaced by Donnie Walsh, who is not pictured.
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They rose last season to an elite level in the Eastern Conference, but they face upheaval in the front office, where Donnie Walsh and Kevin Pritchard have replaced Larry Bird and David Morway as team president and general manager.
The new management is focused on the future and the clear long-term vision that put the franchise on this track.
"Donnie Walsh made it very clear that our goal was to keep the starters together and add to our bench," Pritchard told HoopsWorld.com in Las Vegas. "(Last season, the Pacers had) the fifth-best record in the league. We took (the Miami Heat) pretty far in the playoffs and, I think, won more games than anybody against Miami."
The Pacers' first-round series victory against the Orlando Magic was their first since 2005, and that success motivedat Pritchard and Walsh to be aggressive in free agency. First, they matched a four-year, $58.4 million offer that All-Star center Roy Hibbert agreed to with the Portland Trail Blazers. Hibbert may not deserve such a lavish contract, but Pritchard had an easy defense for keeping the 7-2 center aboard and making the trade that sent out Darren Collison and Dahntay Jones for backup center Ian Mahinmi.
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"We really felt like length helps in the playoffs. You've got to have some size, some bulk, so bringing Roy back was our first priority," Pritchard said. "With Ian, we get a guy who can play the five and four. He's 6'11", and he's 27, so he's still improving. And everybody says he's a great worker, so we feel lucky to get him."
The Pacers continued the aggressive play by adding point guard D.J. Augustin and small forward Gerald Green. Both came cheaply on the free agent market and offer great, if unreachable, upside.
Pritchard plans to turn Augustin into a prototypical point guard, which was a big selling point in getting him to Indianapolis.
"In Charlotte, he was so looked upon to score, but with us he can be a facilitator, or be in a pick-and-roll and find players, but he doesn't have to go in to score to help us," Pritchard said. "His role will change, but he really embraced that when we talked to him."
Green played well for the New Jersey Nets last year after returning from Moscow. He averaged 12.9 points in 31 games for the Nets, enough, along with a great interview, to convince the Pacers' brass to give him a long-term shot in Indiana despite struggling in previous NBA stops.
"We met with him for a couple of days," Pritchard said. "Kids mature. It's just a part of the business. He's really come a long way, but what I like is that he's really hungry. He's ready to get after it, and we feel like we get a good signing in him. He'll help our bench because he can really score and is super talented. He hasn't put it all together yet, but we hope he can for us."
This could be a year in which the Pacers congeal as a team. The East's Central Division is ripe for the picking, especially with Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose projected to miss most or all of the season. But the new brass has bigger plans than a single season of success.
"Coach (Frank) Vogel wants to keep this team together and see them grow," Pritchard said. "We'll look for deals and be opportunistic, but it's not like we have to do something right now.
"It's never done, but it's time to sit back and evaluate where we are."
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