Yahoo's Adian Wojnarowski just reported that the Pacers are in talks with the Celtics to potentially land their superstar guard Rajon Rondo (check out the report here).  It's really part of Boston's grand plan to land Chris Paul (although reports suggest Paul wouldn't re-sign with the Celtics), and since New Orleans would prefer to rebuild if they lose Paul rather than sign Rondon, they needed a third party for the deal to work.

Enter the Pacers, who already have Darren Collison, AJ Price, Lance Stephenson (well...) and the newly signed George Hill.  It doesn't make much sense to me that they would want someone like Rondo, who is reportedly a difficult guy to work with and arguably only excelled because he had Boston's 'Big Three' to pass to and they had the authority to keep him in check.  Throw him in Indiana with a young coach in Frank Vogel and guys who aren't on the same level as those three future Hall of Famers and there's no telling how he might react.  Plus he badly dislocated his elbow in last season's playoffs against Miami, and there's still a little question mark over that.

On the other hand, remember when people were saying Rondo was the 'Big One' in Boston and that he was better than the 'Big Three'?  Remember at the start of last season when he was blitzing the NBA and dishing out dimes like he was Magic Johnson?  What if it's that Rondo that arrives in Indiana, and he learns to shoot?  In my humble opinion he is still not one of the PGs at the very top -- I'd rank Derrick Rose, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Steve Nash, Russell Westbrook and Steve Nash above him -- but he's still an undoubted upgrade on any guard on the Pacers at the moment.

My inclination is for the Pacers to shoot down this offer.  They don't need Rondo and it would take way too much to get him. 

Before all this lockout nonsense began, it was a well-known fact that the Indiana Pacers were in pursuit of a big name big man through free agency -- namely David West and Nene.

Now the lockout is almost over, it's time to take a look at whether the Pacers really can land one of these guys, and whether they ought to try.

Currently, the Pacers have Roy Hibbert as the incumbent center and Tyler Hansbrough as the likely starting power forward, which is not too shabby but could certainly be improved on.  Back-up center and free agent Jeff Foster is getting on in years and has been troubled by injury more recently, but I assume the Pacers would like to re-sign him as a sign of respect and loyalty to reward Foster for services to the Pacers over the years so that he can retire a Pacer.  Josh McRoberts is more of a question mark -- the Pacers showed a willingness to trade him for OJ Mayo at the end of the last season, but if they can get a him for a good price I think they'd like him to return too.  As for free agent number three Solomon Jones, his career with the Pacers is as good as over.

In short, the Pacers have a core of Hibbert, Hansbrough, probably Foster and maybe McRoberts.  Granger and Posey (if he isn't tossed out beforehand) can play the four but they're not considered 'bigs'.  Accordingly, West or Nene (and/or Carl Landry) would be a very nice addition.

David West

The New Orleans free agent recently had major ACL surgery which is never a good sign, especially for a 31-year-old like West.  Nevertheless, his stock remains high, which is why he opted out of his contract in search of the bigger dollars.

Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski reported a short while ago that several teams are interested in West, but New Orleans and the Pacers remain the frontrunners to land him.  If this is the case, then I would say the Pacers should have the edge, considering the rumors surrounding the departure of Chris Paul from New Orleans.  With Indiana, West can get the dollars as well as a chance to win.  With the Hornets, if Paul leaves, West would be destined for the lottery for at least the forseeable future.



But the bigger question is, do the Pacers need West?  He would inject a much needed veteran presence, but at 6'9" West is somewhat undersized, and with his ACL condition up in the air, would it be too much of a gamble?  Plus are West's numbers inflated by the presence of the best PG in the league in Chris Paul?  He has played with Collison in New Orleans, which might allow their pick and roll game to flourish, but whichever way you look at it, signing West comes with big risks and only moderate potential.

That said, any time a big name free agent who can make a significant impact is willing to come to Indiana, I say take 'em.

Nene

Wojnarowski also reported that Indiana is a player in the Nene sweepstakes, along with Denver, New Jersey, Golden State, Houston, LA Clippers and Portland.  Theoretically, the Pacers wouldn't be a frontrunner, but Nene might be a good fit -- a big (6'11"), defensive minded player who can rebound and run the floor but not quite the multi-faceted offensive threat West is.  



Consider a frontline with the 7'2" Hibbert and the 6'11" Nene, which would shift the energetic Hansbrough to sixth man, a role most believe he would relish.  Nene could play the five with Hansbrough or the four with Hibbert, and he could easily play 30 minutes a night.  Hibbert and Nene makes a more imposing defensive combo than with West, but considering how much the Pacers need a second reliable scoring option next to Granger, it's not clear which path the Pacers would take if the gods smile upon them and make both men available.

There's another big piece of potential news which I'll report on next.

 

Here we go!  With the end of the lockout essentially a formality now, it's time to start looking at the upcoming season, set to start on Christmas Day.

According to ESPN, the Pacers are one of the teams that got screwed by the proposed new agreement because the Pacers had been patient in saving cap space in order to pursue marquee free agents in the coming years -- and now the new amnesty clause will arm other teams with the ammunition to compete with the Pacers, which does not bode well for a small market team in Indiana.

Nevertheless, the future looks bright for the Pacers. 

According to various sources, there are a couple of potential moves in the works.  I'll report on them shortly.

Apparently, a tentative deal has been reached.  Rejoice!

The owners and players still need to vote in order for a 66-game season to commence on Christmas Day.  Considering how everyone is so sick and tired of this lockout, hopefully it will be no more than a formality.

Danny Granger tweeted: "I'm pretty sure the vote will happen either tomorrow or sunday...let's all pray this turns out well."

Finally, something we can all agree on! 

As we watch yet another day, week, month slip away from the 2011-2012 NBA season, there is not much to do around here except sigh.  The Pacers could have been leading the Central Division right now, but instead, the only piece of news is that TJ Ford, former Pacers guard who had no chance in hell of coming back to the Pacers after becoming a free agent in the summer, is headed to Croatia to play for KK Zagreb.

Let's face it, Ford should have gone there as soon as the season ended, given how low his stock had plummeted on the Pacers' bench.  To be fair, Ford was the consummate professional, but for some reason, like many Pacers point guards, lose their ability to pass and become score-first PGs as soon as they hit the floor.

Let's wish him all the best.

PS: In other news, I might start the player reviews again.  I was hoping the lockout would end and I'd be able to skip them altogether, but alas, not to be.