“We’re very excited about the trades we made,” said Pacers President of Basketball Larry Bird. “We know we got some good character guys and good players. I just want to help the franchise move forward and we feel with the draft, we know we picked up two good guys that our fans are going to be very supportive of and excited about.”
Added Pacers Coach Jim O’Brien: “I think Larry and (General Manager) David Morway did an outstanding job in changing around our basketball team, both with the trades and the picks. Our team will have a completely different look next year. Overall, the seven new players we have give us a completely different look than we had last year and we have maintained the guys that got the majority of playing time at the end of last season.
“An area of particular concern for us last year was the point guard spot. We certainly feel with Travis (Diener) returning and the addition of T.J. Ford and Jarrett Jack we have solidified that position. We feel getting Maceo, Rasho and Josh really gives us solid depth up front. Brandon gives us a guy who can very quickly impact both ends of the court. Defensively, we think he can be a high-level stopper and we also think Brandon has the potential to create his own shot on a regular basis as well as give us spacing on the court. Roy gives us size and low-post scoring. At the end of every game, he’s still going to be 7-2, which is a real important factor for us.”
The deals:
– Pacers trade Jermaine O’Neal to Raptors for T.J. Ford in six-player deal
– Blazers trade J.Jack, J.McRoberts, B.Rush to Pacers for J.Bayless, I.Diogu
