IC Cold Links: Jim O'Brien Quotes Continue To Entertain As Pacers Prep For Celtics Tonight

The Indiana Pacers are in Boston today to take on the Celtics. With only one game in the past five days, the local stories have focused on the good play of Roy Hibbert and Brandon Rush, complete with glowing remarks from teammates and coaches alike.

Well, sort of.

Jim O'Brien adds further evidence to the case that his top priority when dealing with the media is to finish the interview. Informing and educating the masses is a secondary concern at best. On some level, I respect that stance completely and would probably try to do the same thing.

But it does makes for some head-scratching comments like the one Mike Wells quoted today about Brandon Rush's development.

"What I liked is that when he missed the layup, he came right back and missed another one, but he was certainly trying to be aggressive," O'Brien said. "He's playing with confidence. When you look at Roy (Hibbert) and Brandon playing with that type of confidence, their development is something we're very pleased with."

Talk about baby steps. We're supposed to laud Rush's development based on his aggressive nature while MISSING layups. The positive take away is that he didn't just pack it in after missing one layup, instead putting his nose to the grindstone and missing another. In all seriousness...that's funny.

Add this to the list of JOB's greatest hits this year where a minute or two after digesting a quote delivered in a funeral-serious tone, your left asking: Wait, did he really just say that?

After the jump, a few more links of interest.

• PACERS: Hibbert developing triple-double skills
  Caught in the Web: Roy Hibbert threatened one of the rarest of achievements Tuesday night -- a triple-double by an NBA center. He fell just short but is developing the kind of game that makes the achievement possible one of these days.
• Celtics must step up
  Steve Bulpett reports on the C's desperately seeking better play from the stars in the lineup.
• Boston Celtics' spin, like their play, seems old and tired
  The C's have been struggling lately and Chris Forsberg reacts to their latest loss to Memphis thusly, "After grisly loss, Celtics' words, like their play, seem old and tired."
• Pacers Crate: Tales From the Road
  The latest episode of Pacers Crate includes media mavens Chris Denari, Conrad Brunner and Mike Wells sharing stories about the logistic gymnastics required to cover an NBA team.
• Reggie Miller on Bob & Tom
  Indy Sports Nation has video of Reggie Miller's appearance on the Bob & Tom radio show a couple of weeks ago. Always entertaining.