Rogers Gets Chance with Pacers

INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 6 - The Pacers have given Carlos Rogers exactly what he has wanted, but found difficult to obtain: a chance.

They hope he can give them exactly what they need: a quality veteran big man to stabilize the frontcourt rotation.

''That's all any player can ever dream of, having the opportunity to shine,'' Rogers said Thursday after the free agent forward-center signed with the Pacers. ''I sat down with the president (Donnie Walsh) and Isiah (Thomas), and they both said, 'Carlos, the opportunity is here for you, it's up to you what you want to do with it.' All I've ever wanted was the opportunity.''

Though Rogers' signing is hardly a blockbuster deal, the Pacers consider it an important move that balances the roster. The 6-10, 245-pound Rogers can play both frontcourt positions, nicely complementing a flexible group of big men that includes Jermaine O'Neal, Jeff Foster, Primoz Brezec and Bruno Sundov.

''We had made the decision that if we couldn't get a really good starting center, we wanted to go with an athletic, long guy, somewhat like Jermaine (O'Neal),'' Walsh said. ''And I think that, in terms of defense, rebounding and shot-blocking, Carlos can do many of the things that Jermaine does and will fit in with the team we have right now.

Walsh

''If you look at what we've got now this rounds it out because it gives you a veteran guy that I think has the kind of game that can complement many of the players we have with us.''

Rogers, 30, has several connections with his new team, his sixth in nine seasons.

As a youth in Detroit, he played both with and against Jalen Rose, who is two years younger. Rogers went to Northwestern High, Rose to Southwestern. In the 1994 draft, which took place in Indianapolis, Rogers (from Tennessee State) was picked No. 11 overall - two spots ahead of Rose.

Rogers enjoyed the most productive seasons of his professional career from 1995-98 with Toronto, where he was acquired by executive vice president Isiah Thomas and coached by Brendan Malone. In 130 games, Rogers averaged 21.4 minutes, 8.4 points and 4.1 rebounds.

After Thomas and Malone both were replaced in Toronto, Rogers was part of a blockbuster, franchise-changing trade to Portland - where he shared pine time with O'Neal from '97-99.

''Sometimes, the opportunity on teams doesn't present itself,'' Walsh said. ''I thought when he was with Toronto, that was a good place for him and it looked like it was going to be, and then Isiah left and they basically changed their team and he ended up in Portland. From day one, they said, 'If somebody gets hurt, you'll play. If they don't, you won't.' So he never really played there. He was like Jermaine. At Houston, when he got a chance to play, he played well.

''I've always liked his ability. I think he fits with the kind of guy that we need. He's 6-11, 245 or 250, he's a shot-blocker, a very good defender, he can run the floor and I think if you ask him to shoot the ball he can do that. He's a guy who can score in the flow of things. I don't know, until I see him on our team, if he's a post-up guy or not. But I like his talent a lot, and I always have.''

Rose

Rogers has a strong relationship with Rose, who is two years younger. Rose was a ballboy when Rogers traveled with the Michigan AAU team, and they have been friends since their youth. A recent conversation with Rose, in fact, led Rogers to the Pacers.

''Me and J go back a lot of years,'' Rogers said. ''I had a chance to sit down with him when I was in Detroit and he said, 'I need some help down there.' I had an opportunity to go to Cleveland and I told him up front, 'J, call your people and I'll come down there with you, and he did.'''

Unable to sign top-tier free agents Chris Webber and Hakeem Olajuwon, the Pacers have since been looking for a veteran big man whose skills and demeanor fit well with the young roster, and believe Rogers fits the job description well because of his combination of athleticism and experience.

''I'm definitely a runner,'' Rogers said. ''If the players see the easy buckets I'm getting, it'll make them want to do the same thing. I believe Isiah knows I can bring that out of the team because I don't sit around and wait for the ball to come to me. I go and get it.''

Rogers spent the past two seasons with Houston, averaging 17.9 minutes, 6.6 points and 4.5 rebounds in 92 games. Stuck behind Hakeem Olajuwon, Maurice Taylor, Kelvin Cato and Kenny Thomas in the frontcourt rotation, Rogers was unable to carve out a consistent place in the rotation.

When he did get the minutes, he made use of them. In the nine games when he played at least 20 minutes, Rogers averaged 9.0 points and 6.6 rebounds, including a 22-point, 10-rebound game against Cleveland. Nevertheless, the Rockets declined to pick up the option on his contract in July, making him a free agent.

Though he isn't expected to be the long-term solution as a starting center, that was his primary position with the Rockets, and he makes no apologies about his ability to handle the position when called upon.

Rogers

''I'm not going to sit here and say I'm going to try to beat 'em up and bang with 'em,'' he said. ''There's other ways to stop big guys, whether it's cutting them off from where they want to go, or just being a pest out there. You've got to do the necessities to make the guard think, 'I don't want to throw them in there.' You just try to out-quick and out-smart them as best you can.''

Originally drafted by Seattle, Rogers was traded to Golden State a month later. It was the first of four trades involving 23 players, including Scottie Pippen, Sarunas Marciulionis and Kenny Anderson among many others, in his career.

His best season came with Toronto in '96-97, when he averaged 9.8 points and 5.4 rebounds in 56 games.

''Maybe you're getting a guy who just hasn't had the opportunity,'' Walsh said. ''I kind of like that.''

The Pacers have made him no promises about his role, but it's clear he'll have the chance to play regularly for the first time since his days in Toronto. Rogers is anxious to re-establish his name in the NBA, as well as settle into something of a leadership role.

''The ultimate thing I want to bring to this team is the demeanor that nobody can beat us,'' he said. ''That's what I carry with me, no matter what I've gone through, I'm just like that horse Secretariat: I think my heart is bigger than anybody I play against.''