Indiana Pacers Blog – Page 48 – NBA Blog

Brooke Olzendam is new Indiana Pacers TV Host/Sideline Reporter

The Indiana Pacers and FOX Sports Indiana announced Wednesday the hiring of Brooke Olzendam (OHL-zen-dam) as TV Host/Sideline Reporter for Pacers TV broadcasts.

Olzendam joins the Pacers and FOX Sports Indiana after a two-year stint with CBS College Sports Network as their prime time football sideline reporter. She has also performed sideline and reporting duties for Comcast SportsNet Northwest, covering a broad spectrum of sports, from professional baseball to horse racing; and hosted pre and postgame shows for the Portland Trail Blazers.

Prior to her time with Comcast SportsNet Northwest, Brooke was the sideline reporter for UCLA football telecasts on FOX Sports West and Prime Ticket. She began her career covering the University of Washington, both as host of “Huskies All-Access,” as well as doing sideline reporting for both football and basketball. She also hosted “Runnin’ with the PAC,” a nationally televised magazine show focused on the Pacific Ten Conference.

Pacers Sports & Entertainment’s Vice President of Broadcasting Jamie Berns is thrilled to have Olzendam join the Pacers broadcasting team on FOX Sports Indiana. “Brooke is a talented, experienced broadcaster who lights up the screen,” said Berns. “She will be a great addition to our team not only on-air, but also in the community.”

“We were familiar with Brooke’s work at FOX Sports West,” said FOX Sports Indiana General Manager and Senior Vice President Jack Donovan. “She’s been successful on both the national and regional level, as a host and live reporter. We’re excited to add Brooke to our broadcast team.”

Born in Spokane, Wash., and a graduate of the Edward R. Murrow School of Communication at Washington State University, Olzendam also has a passion for basketball that stems from her father Dave Olzendam, a member of the Washington State Coaches Hall of Fame.

Roy Hibbert to appear on NBC TV show Parks and Recreation

Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star reports:

The NBA lockout has given Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert time to work on a possible second career.

The always-animated Hibbert will make his acting debut Thursday when he has a cameo appearance on the NBC show “Parks and Recreation,” which stars Amy Poehler.

InsideHoops.com editor says: This gives people like me, who used to sometimes watch Parks and Recreation but then simply forgot about it, a reason to give it another shot.

Donnie Walsh in Indiana, waiting to make next move

Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reports (via blog):

Donnie Walsh has been spending most of his time at home in Indiana, waiting for the basketball season to start and waiting to make his next move.

He probably won’t have to go far. There is growing sentiment that Walsh will return to his old job of running the Pacers if and when Larry Bird steps down. According to several people close to the situation, Bird is leaning toward leaving Indiana after this season.

The plan would be for Walsh to replace Bird and name either Chris Mullin or Reggie Miller as general manager. When I spoke to Walsh last Friday in Manhattan before he was inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame, he declined to address his future except to say that he still wants to work.

NBA postpones training camps, cancels October 9-15 preseason games

The NBA announced today that player training camps for the 2011-12 season have been postponed indefinitely because a new collective bargaining agreement has not been reached with the National Basketball Players Association. Training camps were scheduled to open on October 3.

In addition, the league canceled all preseason games scheduled from October 9 through October 15.

“We have regretfully reached the point on the calendar where we are not able to open training camps on time and need to cancel the first week of preseason games,” said NBA Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver. “We will make further decisions as warranted.”

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Indy Pro-Am vs Goodman League basketball game at Butler University

The majority of the high-profile events have been based on the East Coast, but the Midwest will finally get a taste of spotlight later this month. On Sept. 24, Indianapolis’ Butler University will host an affair pitting the Indy Pro-Am against the Washington, D.C.-based Goodman League — the same outfit that took on both the Los Angeles-based Drew League and a Baltimore-based “Melo League” squad featuring LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul — last month, CSNChicago.com confirmed with Indy Pro-Am founder Carlos Knox.

Knox said he expects Indy Pro-Am participants such as Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph, former Butler star and Jazz swingman Gordon Hayward, Jazz first-round draft pick Alec Burks, Pacers guard Lance Stephenson, Pacers guard and Indianapolis native George Hill and Wizards draft pick Shelvin Mack, another recent Butler product, to participate. On the Goodman end, reigning two-time NBA scoring champion and Thunder superstar Kevin Durant, a Washington native, and Wizards star John Wall are the reported headliners.

Being that Indianapolis is only an approximately three-hour drive away, it might be the closest Chicago will get to a high-profile exhibition — even without labor negotiations as of yet resolved, look for several of these events to crop up this month, before the official opening of NBA training camps officially open in October — this offseason, for the time being.

— Reported by Aggrey Sam of CSN Chicago.

Pacers guard George Hill to play Texas Fuel ABA exhibition game during lockout

The ABA Texas Fuel today announced that George Hill, the former San Antonio Spurs guard recently traded to the Indiana Pacers, is scheduled to play for the Texas Fuel pending the NBA lockout.

It appears that Hill, so far, has only agreed to play in one exhibition game. Not for the actual ABA season.

The Texas Fuel will open its pre-season on Sunday, October 16th vs. the West Texas Whirlwind at Manual Garza B. Gymnasium at the University of Texas at Brownsville, TX and Texas Southwest College.

“We are very pleased to have George as part of the Texas Fuel while the NBA lockout continues,” stated Marlon Minifee, Texas Fuel GM. “He is a great player and a terrific young man who has done so much for the community; I know we will miss seeing him play for the San Antonio Spurs, but we are excited about his being able to return home to Indianapolis when the NBA resumes play. For now, he will add so very much to our team.with his skills and leadership.”

The exhibition game will start at 6pm; adult tickets are $10, kids under 13 are $5.

Danny Granger hopes Pacers get depth at power forward

Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star reports:

Q: How will the lockout impact the Pacers?

Indiana Pacers forward Danny Granger: It’ll hurt us bad. We finally got some veteran players, back in the playoffs and now we don’t know what’s going to happen. We should be piggy-backing off last year and building off of it. You get a short season and you never know what’s going to happen, ’cause it’s not a normal season. We need more time together and we’re young and the more time we have together as a team will help us. Reducing the season, taking away the preseason, no training camp, it can only hurt us.

Granger: Has there been any talk about you and your teammates getting together to work out?

A: We’ve already started talking about it. I spoke with the coaches before the lockout and they gave their views on what we should do. Me and Jeff (Foster) are trying to plan it out so when the season starts we will have been going for a good month. There’s not going to be a preseason, probably won’t be much of a training camp, either.

Granger: Free agency will be a lot shorter once the lockout ends. What area do you guys need to address most?

A: I think with what’s on the market at power forward, we have the opportunity to go get one of them. David West, Nene and Carl Landry are available. There are some good power forwards out there. I think we need to be deeper at that position.

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Houston lands 2013 NBA All-Star Game

Mark Berman of My Fox Houston reports:

NBA sources told FOX 26 Sports the Houston Rockets and the City of Houston landed the NBA All-Star Game in 2013. The game will be played at Toyota Center on Feb. 17, 2013. NBA All-Star week will be Feb. 15-17. The Rockets and Toyota Center also hosted the game in 2006.

Click2Houston reports:

The entire NBA All-Star Weekend will be in the Bayou City from February 15-17, 2013. Hilton Americas Marketing Director Janice O’Neill-Cox spoke with Local 2 Sports Wednesday afternoon, saying, “We played a key role in working with the league to make sure availability was in place. It’s a big boost for our city to land the game, and we’re excited about it.”

InsideHoops.com editor says: I don’t get why Houston is getting the game again. They just had it in 2006. Meanwhile, other teams haven’t hosted it in a long time. Also, Madison Square Garden renovations will be mostly complete in time. And the new Brooklyn Nets arena will exist by mid 2012. Unusual call to send the big weekend back to Houston so soon.

Video: Magic Johnson likes Larry Bird. Not then, but now

Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson and Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird weren’t friends in their playing days. Sure, they respected each other — the same way you might respect a tornado flying towards your home and loved ones — but there was a friendly competitive hatred there.

These days, though, with their playing days long behind them, the memories remain, but feelings of dislike have been left in the past.

Here’s a video clip of Magic Johnson, at a Los Angeles Times-related event, talking about liking Larry Bird:

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Wife of Indiana Pacers owner may have saved a life today

The AP reports:

The wife of Indiana Pacers owner Herb Simon directed CPR efforts on a lawyer who suffered an apparent heart attack in a Los Angeles courthouse where Bui Simon and her husband are being sued by former household help.

Bui Simon immediately rushed over Monday and directed a man on how to do chest compressions as the victim lay motionless.

Bystanders say the stricken attorney walked out of another courtroom down the hall and suddenly fell to the ground. Bui Simon shouted commands to attorney Robert Vargas, who was doing the CPR and continued to urge him on until medical personnel arrived.