The initial news of Danny Granger hurting the ring finger on his shooting hand was a little disconcerting to say the least.

Fresh off the regular season creeping into view after the Pacers released their schedule yesterday, the visual of a dangling digit from 24 points per game was enough to make me recoil in horror.

That was fun. Pack your bags. We'll see you again in October.

But after reading past the headlines, all reports indicate that the reality wasn't nearly as bad as the visual. In fact, everyone from Team USA commenting on the situation, including Granger, are hopeful he can return to play this week. Results of the x-rays weren't reported which will ultimately determine whether or not Granger should continue playing with Team USA.

Until then, we'll wait for good news while expecting the worse.

After the jump, a few links of interest with the reports on Granger, a nice look at Butler's Shelvin Mack, a contract for Luke Harangody and more schedule analysis.

• AP: Granger dislocates finger
• Danny Granger injures finger at Team USA practice
  Chris Sheridan reports on Granger's injured finger.
• Tuesday Scrimmage Impressions " NBA.com
  John Schuhmann offers his observations from Team USA's scrimmage action yesterday.
• Team USA Roster for FIBA World Championship Still in Flux
  Chris Tomasson reports on Team USA starting up again in New York and Granger's injured finger adding more uncertainty to the roster.
• Pacers could get off to a decent start
  Mike Wells likes the favorable early schedule for the Pacers.
• Butler guard impresses
  David Woods reports on Butler's Shelvin Mack expanding his game this summer while holding his own against some of the top players in the NBA.
• Harangody signs with Celtics
  Former Andrean/Notre Dame bruiser, Luke Harangody parlayed his solid summer league play into a two-year contract with the Boston Celtics.