Pacers “Won’t be afraid to think big” this off-season
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
INDIANAPOLIS — Pacers President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard had his end-of-season press conference on Wednesday morning. His main message? He’s proud of his team, knows they need more talent, and he won’t be afraid to go after that talent this summer.
“We’re willing to think big,” said Pritchard. “We’re willing to look in the mirror. We’re not afraid. I’m super proud of this team, but we have to improve our talent. The Boston loss was as challenging a series as I’ve ever been a part of. I thought we’d win a few games. I think we’ve got to look in the mirror. We’ve got to get better.”
On the salary cap and free agency– “We will have between 43-45 million dollars in cap space. That brings some excitement. That allows you to do uneven trades. It allows you to go after free agents. Can we bring in a big name guy? The truth is, the thing we can offer any player is- we believe we have a strong culture. And you know we’re going to win. I can promise you we’ll talk to all of our free agents. They deserve that. And we’ll be aggressive. I’m not going to tell you names of who we’d like to go after. I don’t want to tip-off 29 other teams. Herb (Simon) wants to win. He has never told me no if it makes the team better. Not one time. I want to think big.”
On the improvements the team needs- “Our backbone has been our defense. But you’re seeing an offensive league. The rules are changing to allow even more offense. I think we’ve got to look at offense. We need some creation- a guy who can break down the defense. And shot-making. I think the lost art of this game- I love a great passing team. Passing is contagious. There were times this year when the ball really moved. But if we can get another creator and passer out there with Victor, that gives us a lot of opportunities.”
On the potential changes coming– “I believe in continuity. Keeping that is as important as elite talent. I’d like to have both. How do we keep this core together and add to it? Continuity will be important for me moving forward. Does that make anyone un-tradeable? I’m not sure how to answer that.”
On Victor Oladipo– “I had dinner with him recently. He promised to come back a better player than ever before. How do you not believe him? It’s just so contagious of his personality. I remember leaving that dinner thinking “Man, we’re going to be really good next year.” It’s too early to put a timeline on his return. We missed his personality just as much as his play.”
On Turner and Sabonis– “I believe Myles is getting to the point where he’s an elite defender and we need to use him more offensively. He said in his exit meeting that he wants to be a two-way player. I think Sabonis- his ceiling is really high. I think he wants a bigger role, and we’ve got to find a way to give him a bigger role. If he can become a better defender, I don’t think there’s any question they can play together. I don’t want to pigeon-hole our options, but I envision them playing more minutes together.”
On Bojan Bogdanovic– “We would like to have extensive talks with Bojan. But he’s also a free agent and he’s going to have lots of interest. We’ve already felt that around the trade deadline. On July 1st, I plan on having an extensive discussion with Bojan.”
On the draft– “I’ve never been more excited about a draft. I like 18 (pick). We’re going to be aggressive. I wouldn’t be surprised if we moved up or down.”
We already knew this would be an interesting summer for the Indiana Pacers. Based off of Kevin Pritchard’s comments, get ready for a wild ride. For what it’s worth, I don’t recall Pritchard saying these types of things at the end of last season. Last year, most of his comments were focused on keeping the core and being proud of the progress. This time around, he sounds more eager to make a splash or two. The Pacers are thinking big and they’ll be aggressive. What roster will that produce? Only time will tell.
