Dunleavy quietly impressing Pacers
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That Mike Dunleavy had scored a game-high 20 points in less than 22 minutes Wednesday night in a 101-96 preseason victory over New Orleans came as an afterthought. For a quiet player that goes about the game with relentless effort but plays so smoothly as to appear effortless, it was somehow fitting.
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"He had a hell of a (game)," said Coach Jim O'Brien. "That's the way he's practiced. He is absolutely made for our passing game – absolutely made for it. And he's made for it more than anybody. He just knows how to move and he just does a lot of things."
Though there was some pre-camp speculation Dunleavy might be better suited to a reserve role, O'Brien has given him a strong vote of confidence and intends to pair him with Danny Granger in the starting wing positions. Dunleavy, who has favorably compared O'Brien's offensive system to the one Mike Krzyzewski employed at Duke, responded with a very strong training camp and followed that up with his impressive outing against the Hornets.
The Pacers continue their preseason schedule against No. 2 NBA Draft pick Kevin Durant and Seattle Saturday in Conseco Fieldhouse at 7 p.m.
Without Dunleavy's fast start, the Pacers might've found themselves in a big hole against the Hornets. He scored 15 of the team's first 21 points and shot 6-of-8 in the first quarter. The rest of the team totaled 12 points on 3-of-18 shooting. Clearly, Dunleavy's a good fit for O'Brien's more aggressive offensive approach.
Hearing that Dunleavy compared his system to that of Krzyzewski, O'Brien said it was "music to my ears."
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"I just think this is going to be the perfect type of situation for him," O'Brien said. "I don't think any of his teammates were surprised with the game he had because that's the way he's practiced."
After a very strong first half against the Hornets, O'Brien would like to see the team sustain its productivity. The Pacers held a 55-35 halftime lead, outscoring the visitors 15-0 on fast-break points and outrebounding them 40-20. The energy subsided in the second half and the tempo slowed. Though the Hornets shot just 38.4 percent, O'Brien was unhappy with the defense.
"Defensively, we were not very pleased," he said. "We didn't do the necessary things. We did not stop the ball from getting to the basket. They saw that, they heard from the staff about it and we practice it almost at the exclusion of anything else.
"What we're trying to do is the exact right way for this team to be at its best so we're going to persist."
O'Brien is convinced the Pacers have the potential to be a solid defensive team but said the key will be their commitment to detail work – fundamentals like keeping their hands up, talking and maintaining the proper defensive stance.
"I feel very optimistic about the (defensive) potential of this team," he said. "But they are really going to have to be mentally tough in order to get where we need to get it, and they know that.
"It's details, and doing the details right every time and at an intensity level that good basketball teams play at. I don't think it's hard to sell (details) to this particular group. They're very open-minded and in practices they have done a remarkable job of executing and learning the details."
NOTES: PACERS PICK UP OPTIONS ON THREE PLAYERS
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