It's been pretty much dead around here since the Pacers missed out on OJ Mayo.

Let's see...Danny Granger bought a house in California -- does that mean he is considering heading over there permanently in the near future? Brian Shaw is staying for another year as associate head coach, as far as we know. Bankers Life Fieldhouse announced some new renovations...all pretty mundane news.

ESPN started their season predictions already, and the experts say the Pacers will finish third in the East behind Miami and Boston, even though they will have the same record as the Celts at 50-32. The records themselves are not really indicative of much because they are averaged out, meaning they will generally be lower than expected.

But I don't see the Pacers falling behind the Celts in the standings. As much as the Celtics improved during the offseason with the addition of Jason Terry and what not, they did lost Ray Allen and their two core guys, Pierce and Garnett, remain on the decline. The Pacers, on the other hand, have a core that is getting better. Their new additions might not add a whole lot considering who they've lost, but they are younger and improving. Definitely more potential if you ask me.

Oh, yes, the latest news is that the Pacers and the Hawks are two teams in the running for Anthony Tolliver, a free agent coming off a season at Minnesota. The Cavs and Wizards are also said to be interested. Tolliver, a 6'8" forward, averaged 4.1 points and 3 rebounds in 17 minutes a game with the Wolves. The Pacers already have three SFs in Granger, George and Gerald Green, but I guess another solid shooter off the bench as insurance doesn't hurt. 

Swingman OJ Mayo has signed a multi-year with the Dallas Mavericks. Not that he was going to join the Pacers anyway, but this has officially put the dreams to sleep, so to speak.

Mayo was almost in a Pacers uniform a couple of times in the past, but the Josh McRoberts trade supposedly fell apart at the last second. Then the Pacers didn't re-sign McBob and didn't pull enough strings to land the prolific prep star in Indiana. Oh well.

Some people remain convinced Mayo would have been a good fit for the Pacers, a team in desperate need of someone who can create their own shot off the dribble and provide an offensive spark off the bench. Mayo was once touted as the top high school player in the nation, but we all know that doesn't always pan out so well in the pros (Lance Stephenson, anyone?). 

Mayo's career high was 18.5 points -- in his rookie season. That's almost unheard of. Last season, he came off the bench in Memphis and put up 12.6 points wile barely breaking 40% on his field goal attempts. So yeah, I'm not sure how I feel about him, though I am certain I would have been happy had he landed in Indy. After all, there hasn't been much to get excited about this offseason.

PS: Nothing to do with the Pacers but how about Jeremy Lin going to the Rockets? Crazy stuff.  Good news for the Pacers though from a basketball standpoint. Plus it shows a small(er) market team can derail a big market team with the right poison pill.

We already knew this was coming so it's not exactly news. But still, it's now official: the Indiana Pacers have succeeded in their two top-priority tasks of this offseason -- re-signing Roy Hibbert and George Hill.

Although new Pacers GM Kevin Pritchard says the team is never done looking for ways to improve, chances are the Pacers are just about finished dealing for now. Unless a miraculous new deal or trade drops into their lap, this Indiana Pacers team will go into the 2012-2013 season with their starting core intact and a few new faces on the bench. It doesn't look like they will add OJ Mayo or Courtney Lee now that they have Gerald Green, and they've already made it clear that they won't be pursuing any amnestied players.

So, what have the Pacers added and lost this offseason?

Re-signings:

C: Roy Hibbert (4 years, $58 million)
G: George Hill (5 years, 40 million)

Additions:

C/PF: Ian Mahinmi (4 years, $16 million) -- trade via Dallas
F: Gerald Green (3 years, $10 million) -- free agent
G: DJ Augustin -- free agent
PF/C: Miles Plumlee - rookie
SG: Orlando Johnson -- rookie

Subtractions:

G: Darren Collison -- traded to Dallas
G/F: Dahntay Jones -- traded to Dallas

Remaining free agents:

G: AJ Price
G/F: Leandro Barbosa
PF/C: Lou Amundson
C: Kyrylo Fesenko

*None of the remaining free agents are expected to be back at this stage.
**Jeff Foster was lost to retirement before the end of last season

The Pacers' 2012-2013 roster is taking shape:

Starters:

Pos.	Name	Height	2011-2012 stats
C	Roy Hibbert	7'2"	12.8ppg, 8.8rpg, 1.97bpg
PF	David West	6'9"	12.8ppg, 6.6rpg, 2.1apg
SF	Danny Granger	6'8"	18.7ppg, 5rpg, 1.8apg
SG	Paul George	6'10"	12.1ppg, 5.6ppg, 2.4apg
PG	George Hill	6'2"	9.6ppg, 3rpg, 2.9apg

Reserves:

Pos.	Name	Height	2011-2012 stats
G	DJ Augustin	6'0"	11.1ppg, 2.3rpg, 6.4apg (Bobcats)
G/F	Gerald Green	6'8"	12.9ppg, 3.5rpg, 1.1apg (Nets)
PF	Tyler Hansbrough	6'9"	9.3ppg, 4.4rpg
C	Ian Mahinmi	6'11"	5.8ppg, 4.7apg, 0.5bpg
G	Lance Stephenson	6'5"	2.5ppg, 1.3rpg, 1.1apg
F/C	Miles Plumlee	6'10	N/A
SG	Orlando Johnson	6'5"	N/A

Analysis:

That's a roster of 12 players at the moment, which is enough, but the Pacers can sign up to 15 in total.

Looking at it now, I can't immediately say that the team has improved from last season. The starting 5 should improve.

The three spots where you're likely to see the biggest improvements are the PG, SG and C positions. George Hill filled in admirably at PG at the end of the season and the playoffs, and should only continue to improve his game and confidence. Paul George's growth has not been as remarkable as hoped, but he will no doubt continue to grow. The question is how much and whether it will only be physical or mental as well. And Big Roy has already said he's looking forward to the challenge of being a max contract player. For some reason I have a sick feeling that he might be too pleased with himself right now and is due for a setback, but I honestly hope he proves me wrong.

The veterans at PF and SF also have room for improvement. David West is a year older but also a further year removed from knee surgery. He showed glimpses of "beast mode" towards the end of last season and I think he will be more consistent in 2012-2013. I even expect his numbers to improve. Danny Granger has no doubt peaked offensively but I hope he continues to learn to be a better team player. I don't care if his scoring average drops to 16 or below as long as he shoots a higher percentage, plays better defense and becomes a better playmaker and rebounder.

As for the bench, sure, Augustin and Green appear to be double-figure scorers off the bench, but that was with poor teams last season. It's unlikely they will get the same burn in Indy. Whether they are overall upgrades on Collison and Jones remains to be seen.

Hansbrough has not only peaked, but appears to have regressed last season behind David West. Mahinmi appears to be an upgrade over center wannabes such as Amundson and the retired Foster, but not a huge one. Plumlee is said to be "NBA ready" but it's hard to see someone who couldn't even make an impact in college make much of a splash in the NBA. My only hope is that he stays healthy, works on his game and provides serviceable minutes. Orlando Johnson's shooting has been way off in the Summer League, but at least he's not afraid to shoot it. I don't think he'll get more minutes than AJ Price did last season, if any.

The X-factor is, of course, Lance Stephenson, who was just named to the Orlando Summer League First Team (along with Plumlee). By all accounts, he has grown up a lot (choke signs aside) and is serious about taking his game to the next level. He will definitely get more minutes this season but it's uncertain whether that will be a positive or negative for the Pacers.

Even though it's not going to happen, I wouldn't mind seeing the Pacers to bring back all the remaining free agents apart from Fesenko. There's no one else out there to sign and the bench just looks a little...incomplete. Mahinmi, Augustin and Green are all unknown commodities in a Pacers uniform and we know Hansbrough will be Hansbrough. Plumlee and Johnson are rookies and Stephenson still hasn't been proven. That's a much flimsier bench on paper if you ask me.

Here's my case for bringing those guys back (at acceptable salary levels):

Barbosa -- yes, he was horrible in the Miami series and has never been much of a defender, but he is a still speedy veteran who can shoot and slash and create his own shot. Green is supposed to replace him but I think they can be a 1-2 scoring punch off the bench. We all know the Pacers' bench struggles to score.

Amundson -- more effective than Hansbrough defensively and more experienced than Plumlee. With Mahinmi on the roster he will no longer have to be forced to guard centers. If Hansbrough continues to regress or if Plumlee is not ready or if either man gets injured the Pacers will become awfully thin up front.

AJ Price -- AJ is serviceable, and that's all you need for a third-string point guard. Lance is probably expected to take up that role now but Price is more proven, safe and stable.

Thoughts?

Okay. So now the Darren Collison/Dahntay Jones trade for Ian Mahinmi is starting to make a little more sense, at least from a personnel-shifting perspective. Whether it will translate to a better team remains to be seen.

The Pacers have signed swingman Gerald Green (who last played for the Nets) and point guard DJ Augustin (who last played for the Bobcats). They must have secured these deals before announcing the Mahinmi trade.  Green is signed for 3 years for what is believed to be around $10 million, while Augustin signed for just one year at $3.5 million.

So what have the Pacers gotten out of these moves so far?

Well, they got a backup center/PF in Mahinmi who should be more serviceable than Tyler Hansbrough, Lou Amundson and Miles Plumlee. Mahinmi is never going to be a star, but defensively he will be more solid than the triple decker white sandwich. Offensively, it's hard to be worse than those guys as well.



They got Green, a former dunk champion who has been passed around the league a little bit. The guy can dunk, that's for sure (see video), and will probably fill the role formerly played by Josh McRoberts (not in terms of skill set but highlight plays). Is he better offensively than Dahntay Jones? Probably. At least more dynamic. The Pacers say they have been following Green's improvement over the last year, though you might want to take a grain of salt with that assessment, considering Green averaged 12.9 points playing for the Nets, who had probably given up on the season by the time they acquired him. Defensively, Green is nowhere near as good as Dahntay, whom I believe was overrated in that department anyway. At the moment I'd say the trade is a wash, but Green certainly provides more potential, especially on the offensive end.



Lastly, they now have Augustin, who, like Collison, is a speedy but tiny point guard generously listed at 6'0". Augustin's shooting numbers have not been pretty in Charlotte, but this may be because he was forced to force things a lot over there. I think Collison, for all his faults, is a starting PG in the league, and will thrive in Dallas. So Augustin does have some decently sized shoes to fill. On the bright side for the Pacers, Augustin is said to be more of a pass first point guard, something the team desperately needs. Chances are Augustin could be the best passer on the team now, considering neither Hill nor AJ Price (if he stays) are great passers. Lance Stephenson might be better (if not more out of control), but he might not get the minutes. At best, I'd say Augustin for Collison is a wash as well, but I have a feeling the Pacers might regret this down the track.



So now that the dust has settled, perhaps the Pacers did come out on top overall. They lost two guys and gained three. If Green and Jones cancel each other out and Augustin and Collison do the same, then the Pacers at least got Mahinmi out of it. And big men in the league are rare these days.

Here is the current depth chart (only includes guys currently signed):

C: Roy Hibbert/Ian Mahinmi/Miles Plumlee
PF: David West/Tyler Hansbrough/Jeff Pendergraph
SF: Danny Granger/Gerald Green
SG: Paul George/Orlando Johnson
PG: George Hill/DJ Augustin/Lance Stephenson

I've included each player's name just once for the sake of simplicity but of course Mahinmi and Plumlee can also play SF, Green can also play SG, George can also play SF, and Hill and Stephenson can both play SG.

That's 13 players with 2 roster spots to fill. Tyler Hansbrough remains on the hotseat and could be traded. AJ Price, Lou Amundson and Leandro Barbosa are all free agents, and it remains to be seen whether any of them will be re-signed. The only other name out there the Pacers appear to be going after is OJ Mayo, who would slot nicely into that SG backup spot behind Paul George.

Personally, I'm not convinced that is a better team than last season, at least not yet. I'll remain patient for now until the Pacers finish dealing.
 

This smelly offseason just took another turn for the Indiana Pacers and I am not sure what to make of it yet.

First of all, Roy Hibbert is remaining a Pacer. That takes care of the biggest question mark this offseason for the Pacers. The Pacers decided to match (as I thought they would all along) and Portland dropped out completely. Roy will be Indiana's franchise center for the next four years.

On the other hand, a potential Roy replacement/back up, serial killer lookalike Chris Kaman, has signed with the Dallas Mavericks. Kaman apparently loves the Texas gun laws. Look out everyone!

The sad news is that former starting point guard Darren Collison has been traded to the Mavs, along with defensive specialist Dahntay Jones, for center Ian Mahinmi. I say sad news for now because I'm a big fan of the speedy Collison, who never lived up to expectations in Indy and even lost his starting job to George Hill towards the end of last season. The Pacers are apparently also after PG DJ Augustin, a restricted free agent with the Bobcats and also forward Gerald Green, a high-flying dunker who last played for the Nets. TylerHansbrough could go as part of the Augustin deal.

Collison was on fire during his rookie season filling in for Chris Paul, which really raised his value, but in Indiana, under the share-the-ball system, his assist numbers were down, and as a starting PG he sure turned the ball over a lot. Like many young players, he was learning on the fly, and had some good moments and a few bad ones as well. But I felt like he was a big time player who wasn't afraid to take the big shot when called upon. He was also improving defensively. Personally, I think the Pacers gave up on him too soon and will probably regret it. The writing was on the wall for him after the Pacers overpaid George Hill, but it's still a shame to see him go. As much as I wish Collison the best, I just hope the Pacers don't regret the decision down the track. I'm still surprised they could not have gotten more for him, to be honest.

Dahntay, on the other hand, I am 'meh' about. He guy is supposed to be a defensive specialist but let's face it, he couldn't really come close to guarding elite offensive players. The guards were too quick and the forwards were too strong. Offensively, he is also a black hole. He has improved his shooting and range but they are all still questionable. I've crapped all over him for long enough but I don't doubt his effort. All the best to him as well in Dallas.

One question mark arising out of this deal is the future of guard AJ Price. If the Pacers get Augustin does that mean Price is gone? Or does he remain the third man at PG behind Hill and Augustin, in case of an injury? He sure is cheap and is serviceable for a 2nd round pick, but I don't think many people will shed tears if he doesn't return.

The other question mark is Leandro Barbosa, the key scoring punch off the bench late last season who had a decent run early but faded late into the playoffs. The free agent was initially regarded as a short term rental and the Pacers haven't said much about him at all. The guy is also a black hole on offense and can't defend very well, but is one of those few players who could create instant offensive for the Pacers' bench, which often struggled to score. Is Gerald Green, if the Pacers can get him, an upgrade? Or should they keep both guys? And does that mean the Pacers are no longer after fellow offensive black hole and shot creator OJ Mayo?

As for the new guys. Mahinmi, otherwise known as "Mini Me", is big and only 25 years old, but he's a horrible rebounder who isn't that great at anything else. Mini Me is a lanky 6'11" PF/C with career high averages of 5.8 points and 4.7 rebounds in 18.7 minutes (achieved last season). Not huge on the guy but he has been improving, and the truth is big men are hard to come by.

I guess the move means two things: one, the Pacers probably see rookie Miles Plumlee as a PF backup, and two, they are trying to get rid of Hansbrough. And where does that leave pornstar lookalike Lou Amundson? All I know is that three white hustle backup big men are too much for one team, even in Indiana.

Regarding the potential acquisitions, Augustin is a guy who can get points, but isn't a great passer either. He's essentially a heavier, stronger version of Collison (both are 6'0") and probably a better defender. His shooting averages are not strong (if you exclude the free throw line) but he does appear to be a slightly more capable passer. His career highs are 14.4 points and 6.4 assists.

Gerald Green? I hear the word "potential" a lot. He has played for Boston, Minnesota, Houston and Dallas, and last season he was a mid-season signee in New Jersey (now Brooklyn), where he averaged 12.9 points in 25.2 minutes. What worries me is the fact that he has bounced around a bit and can't seem to find a home despite pretty decent numbers and excellent athleticism.

So far, the Pacers appear to have taken a step backwards this offseason. They have lost Collison and Jones but gained Mahinmi. If they can get Augustin and Green while losing Hansbrough and Barbosa...does that make them a better team? I dunno. Feels like inconsequential dealings on paper, just moving minor pieces for minor pieces.

All I know is that the Pacers aren't done dealing yet.

PS: Summer league action has kicked off in Orlando and the Pacers are 2-1. Lance Stephenson has played pretty well, showing glimpses of brilliance but also momentary lapses in judgment (as he has throughout his time with the Pacers). Maybe he has grown up and is ready to make an impact at last. Plumlee has also played okay, perhaps better than anticipated, but no one is calling him the next Tim Duncan just yet. Orlando Johnson, the second round guy they picked up for cash, has struggled mightily with his shot. If he keeps this up he won't get many minutes in his rookie season.