by Mark Montieth | askmontieth@gmail.com
March 12, 2013
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(Why is Miles Plumlee) not playing for either team since the All-Star break? What's he doing?
— Mark
A. Plumlee won't play any more this season with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. He probably won't play for the Pacers, either, unless there are injuries. He'll practice with the Pacers the rest of the season.
I asked Frank Vogel about this before the game with Boston, and he said the emphasis now is to have Plumlee attuned to what the Pacers are doing in case injuries require his services.
Q. Looking at (the game with Chicago), why does ESPN send a crew that has such an anti-Pacers bias. Hibbert had 18 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks and all you heard was how much of a force Noah was. Coach Vogel was an afterthought. Coach Thibodeau is the reason Chicago was over-achieving and still a force in the Central division. That Indiana does not have a chance against the Heat in a seven-game series. Because we don't have a Chris Paul, that was the reason David West had to do all the scoring, even though George Hill was impacting the game as much as anyone. It was pathetic and I hope that crew never works another Pacers game ever.
— Fhighb1024
A. I didn't hear the broadcast because I was at the game, but I've heard a lot of complaints. It sounds like there's justified reason for them.
Having said that, I always encourage people not to worry about the national perception of the Pacers, or whether they're getting enough "respect." What difference does it make? Would being the lead story on SportsCenter or making the cover of Sports Illustrated help them win? If anything it would be a distraction. It's always better to fly under the radar, and if it helps a team to have the “no respect” chip on its shoulder, so be it.
Q. What is the future of Granger? We seem to be doing OK without him ... get some draft picks for him and pay George, Stephenson and West more cash.
A. Granger’s future likely will be a popular topic of discussion after the season ends, regardless of whether or not he’s able to come back and play well. He’ll have one year remaining on his contract, at about $14.2 million. Even if there would be logic in trading him, however, it will be difficult to do because of his knee history. If you were running a team, would you trade draft picks for him? And, remember, salaries in trades must match within 125 percent plus $100,000 for teams over the salary cap. A team would have to be about $14 million under the cap to trade draft picks for Granger.
The immediate concern of the off-season will be re-signing David West. I've talked with front office executives, and they say they fully expect to be able to do it. As for Granger, we’ll just have to wait and see – about his knee and his production first of all. Everything else will hinge on that.
Q. I live in southern Indiana and the (Roger Brown) documentary will probably not air in the Louisville, Ky. market. Are there plans to produce a DVD or is that financially out of the question? We have followed the Pacers since the middle 1980s, and though I never saw Rajah play, I’ve seen his banner and have some friends who sit near us who saw him play in the Coliseum.
—Doug
A. I asked Ted Green, who produced the documentary, and he said they're working on it. Nothing is definite, but the plan is to sell a DVD through the Pacers' gift shop and WFYI. Take my word for it, it's worth watching – and buying.
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