I leave town for a couple of days, no online access, no problem, right? It's mid-July, drafts over, all the new guys are in town, what could possibly happen? Sure, Tinsley could be moved, but probably not over a weekend, right?

Of course, no one told me Shawne Williams had friends in from Memphis. I did have Brent on alert that I was gone in case something were to happen and he came through big time, linking up Shawne's latest traffic stop. Brent captured the initial emotion of the report perfectly, "Truly disheartening and sad to say the least." If only Shawne were as reliable as Brent.

Once again, Shawne has me shaking my head. How come every traffic stop involving Shawne ends up with a mug shot? He's been pulled over for failing to signal a turn correctly and driving with tinted windows. Those minor offenses escalate to a "friend" taking a trip with police for a marijuana possession.

This latest incident has all the indications of a "driving while black" stop, but that still doesn't excuse Shawne's judgment. If you're going to drive through Carmel with tinted windows, you better be clean as a whistle. Shawne doesn't have the luxury of excuses, no matter how valid.

I don't have the energy to scream for Shawne to be dumped immediately, mainly because he, again, wasn't charged with anything and is only guilty of harming the improved image the Pacers have been working extremely hard to clean up.

That's what stinks most about this episode is that it flushes away some of the good will the Pacers organization has built up with the community over the past couple of months. Fortunately, the great work they've done locally will help deflect the impact of this news directly on Shawne.

But nationally, the story is different. As reports of the incident make the AP wire and are reported on ESPN, Yahoo! Sports, SI.com, etc., the national perception remains the same. Any signs of positive change have been washed away.

So, now what happens?

I wouldn't mind Shawne joining Tinsley and the trip out of town. Too much history, too much drama, just time to move on. I also don't think Shawne has any idea what it takes to be a champion. Yes, he's young but that doesn't mean he has to act like it. Show me some signs of maturity, some commitment to being great. Back up your words with action. Better yet, stop talking and start doing.

This is a huge make or break year for Shawne as it is, so if he can't be dealt, I'm fine with leaving him on the roster. He's not a bad locker room guy and at worst, becomes a wasted talent on the bench that will be gone at the end of the year. It might do him good to see a couple of rookies come in who are his age but appear much more mature at this point. As I've mentioned before, the youth excuse is gone, Shawne. What you gonna do?

The revamped roster was all smiles on Wednesday.

Regardless, there was no hiding JOB's excitement as the Pacers introduced the remaining new Pacers (save Rasho Nesterovic) at a Fieldhouse press conference on Wednesday. He now has the pieces (presents?) to expect a strong defensive effort. The ball will continue to move at his preferred pace on offense, but the roster now boasts much more balance among its depth.

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Newleywed Mike Wells checked in with Larry Bird on the Pacers salary cap issues and the willingness of the Simons to make moves that would exceed the cap and result in a luxury tax for the team. The shor answer: No way!

"We're up around $69 million right now and we don't want to go over the tax," Bird said. "You always like to save some money, but the thing is, our owners are not going to save money and not have a productive team out there, especially when we did the deals we did this summer. I think it's being able to move some pieces to get the type of player we want at (power forward)."

The luxury tax threshold is $71.150 million, so moving Tinsley could free up a little money, but any big move prior to the season would also require moving other big contracts on the roster.

I have absolutely no problem with the Pacers sticking to budget and avoiding the luxury tax. If the team was a player, maybe two, away from championship contention, sure,  I'd implore everyone at the Fieldhouse to go all in and not worry about the luxury tax. But that's just not the case right now.

They are trying to rebuild the foundation of the team and really need flexibility going forward. Keeping room available under the cap makes manuevering much easier.

I'm still disillusioned with the burden Jermaine O'Neal's max contract put on the franchise. It became an anchor, forcing the team to react slower than Gheorge Muresan. Face it, Indy is a small market team and will always have trouble luring free agents. Fine. Figure out a system that works for the franchise to keep it flexible and successful. To do this, the front office has to make tough decisions and sometimes very unpopular choices.

One idea would be to avoid signing players to long term max contracts, especially the second time around. Assuming a player demanding a max deal is valuable, sign and trade said player for younger players, expiring contracts and/or picks. Then dip into your assets to pick up max (or close to max) contract-type players with only 2 or 3 years remaining on their big contract. No high impact players available? No problem. Bank the picks and players or make smaller deals to bolster areas of need on the roster.

This would be a tough plan to follow and would require success before the general fan base bought in. Since you're essentially trading the best (and probably most popular) players and flipping them for future unknowns the team would be in constant PR mode. But making tough, smart choices is the only option for a small market team that can't throw money at their problems to move past mistakes.

Rasho Nesterovic won't be on hand Wednesday when the Pacers formally introduce the players brought in via trade a few weeks ago, but he has a great excuse. He's busy leading the Slovenian national team in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Slovenia beat Korea, 88-76 in their first game, led by Rasho's 26 points and 9 rebounds. According to this report, Rasho will retire from the Slovenian team after this Olympic run.

Instead of having Rasho take questions from the media, they can just show some highlihgts of his play this week. Much better intro to the city.

The Pacers' second round draft pick last year, Stanko Barac, is also involved in the FIBA tournament, playing a reserve role for Croatia. Barac scored 2 points and grabbed 2 rebounds in 9 minutes of burn as Croatia beat Cameroon, 93-79. 

The tournament's preliminary round continues tomorrow with Slovenia taking on Canada. Croatia plays again on Wednesday against Puerto Rico.

Yes, the injuries have been maddening. The constant talk about winning and leading at an elite level which never happened was frustrating. The brawl, the aftermath, and struggle since will always stick with J.O.'s Pacers tenure.

But, please, let's not forget the three 20 and 10 seasons prior to the brawl. With Reggie Miller's career winding down, J.O. was the key piece bridging the Pacers from their late 90's success to the post-Reggie era without fully rebuilding. Until November 19th, 2004, the 04-05 Pacers were poised to make a championship run out of the Eastern Conference. Through all the turmoil that followed, J.O. remained a rock on the team. Tried to work through all the issues with Ron Artest and Stephen Jackson, but it would never be the same.

The first time Jermaine O'Neal stunned me with his game is a visual memory forever etched in my mind. It happened during a November home game against the Washington Wizards, the first game I attended in the 2000-01 season.

After reaching the Finals the year before, Donnie Walsh had to quickly transition the team to mix in some young talent with the veteran scorers still on the roster. Rik Smits was done so J.O. had to jump into the void left by TWO Pacer front-court legends in Smits and Dale Davis (sent to Portland for J.O).

I couldn't wait to see J.O. that night. I was expecting raw. I was expecting gangly. I was hoping to see a glimpse of potential.

Instead, I was left mouth agape as he accepted a post-entry pass, spun on a dime and dropped in a little one-hander before his defender could react. I mean, the spin move was so quick he looked way out of control, but he wasn't. That spin turned into slo-mo as he released the shot under control and in perfect balance.

My first thought was, "HOLY ----, did you see that?" My second thought was, "Why in the world did Portland give up this guy?"

For all the big games and big plays I've seen Jermaine involved in with the Pacers, if someone mentions his name, the first thing that goes through my mind is that initial, live impression. Sweet, there it is again.

The last few years have been a struggle. The quickness isn't the same. The game has been re-made to rely on veteran savvy. But as long as the knee holds up, our paths will cross again.

Jermaine O'Neal is gone now in a move that refreshes both his career and the Pacers. Just don't forget the many good years 7 gave to the organization, the fans, and the community.

Good bye and good luck, J.O.

Shawne Williams was declared to be on "thin ice" by Larry Bird last week. Today he took a step toward thickening up that ice to secure his footing within the organization as he participated in the first workout for the Pacers' rookie/free agent camp.

I believed last week and I believe now that Bird still has high hopes for Shawne's career and his comments were some tough love and nothing he hadn't already expressed to the young forward. Shawne's agent confirmed that and today, so did Shawne. He met with the media after today's practice and addressed Bird's comments.

"I can't get mad," Williams said. "He's got a job to do and I've got a job to do. I ain't losing respect for Larry. He's just doing his job. He's right."

"I feel like it's a make-or-break year," Williams said. "I've got to go out and do my job, just play, stay healthy and stay out of trouble and everything should fall in place."

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First of all, huge thanks to all the commenters last night and today. Obviously, there's plenty of dissention over the draft day moves made by the Pacers. I think that has come through loud and clear here, yet remained pretty respectful. I really enjoy the debate and and appreciate everyone's ability to express their outrage without devolving into profane name calling. Of course, that's why I always tell people that the Pacers have a classy fan base.

The way the debate has gone, I find myself defending all the moves made last night, which to me boils down to giving up Jerryd Bayless for Brandon (I did it again, typed Kareem first) Rush and Jarrett Jack.  In reality, I'm just defending the clock on the wall. I refuse to make a snap judgment of failure before Rush ever laces 'em up in the L.

The Pacers have embarked on a long rebuilding effort that started with a mish mash of varied and inconsistent talent with bad contracts paralyzing any real change. With the J.O. trade the team created a little breathing room. The roster is already much more cap friendly and next summer will be even more so. That doesn't mean they will go blow the cap space on any ol' player available, but it does give the team flexibility to make more moves if an opportunity opens up.

The team is far from done. We know Tinsley won't be around and there will likely be more players moved between now and the trade deadline next February. Larry Bird, David Morway, and Jim O'Brien have a plan that includes changing the style of play, talent and financial state of the roster, and the overal culture of the organization. Now they are starting to work the plan and it won't be easy. There will be 'bloodshed' along the way, but as long as they keep working the plan I think they're headed in the right direction. Just don't expect it to be pain free.

Here's Chad Ford's analysis of the Pacers' draft.

To evaluate the Pacers, you have to take a step back a day to see how everything unfolded. They traded the chronically injured Jermaine O'Neal and a second-round pick for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston and the No. 17 pick. That means they added a starting point guard coming off a career year, significant cap space in 2009 and a prospect.

Then Indiana swapped No. 11 and Ike Diogu for No. 13 and picked up a solid backup point guard, Jarrett Jack, and a local hero, Josh McRoberts.

So in the course of two days, the Pacers rebuilt their team in a way that improves it now and in the future. The Pacers should be much more exciting to watch with a Ford/Jack/Rush/Mike Dunleavy backcourt. The additions of Hibbert and Nesterovic give them some much-needed size. And with several major expiring contracts, including Nesterovic, Marquis Daniels and Jeff Foster, they'll have some significant trading chips at the trade deadline or real cap space in the summer of 2009.

Kudos to president Larry Bird and general manager David Morway for one of the most sophisticated rebuilding efforts I've seen.

Here are a few other reviews of the trades and draft:

• Draft Express (scroll down for a peek at next year's draft prospects)
• Bob Kravitz
• HoopsWorld
• Yahoo! Sports from Miami Herald

I'm off to the airport so I'll be checking in from Seattle with my next post. Again, thanks for the healthy debate. I love all the passion!!!

Mike Wells talked to Jermaine O'Neal today and has him on record confirming the trade to Toronto. Not only does he confirm the deal, he goes out classy. Thanks, J.O.

“I met so many different people around (Indianapolis) in my eight years and they allowed me to (become) a perennial All-Star,” O’Neal said in a phone interview. “It was a hard decision, but I understand it was the best decision for the team and myself. Sometimes when you’re at a particular place for so long and it doesn’t go right, you need a new start.”

Why he's looking forward to a fresh start after the past few years of craziness surrounding the Pacers.

"It stopped being about basketball and it really wore me down," the six-time All-Star forward said. "It’s hard to go from being on the cusp of winning a championship to coming down and not making the playoffs. It was a lot more difficult than I thought it would be."

O’Neal said when he’s done playing, he plans to retire as a Pacer.

I'll be standing and applauding when that time comes, J.O. I've enjoyed watching you become a man on and off the court. Good luck with the Raptors.

The past few weeks have been full of speculation which only leads to questions. Tonight we can finally see all the answers unfold before our eyes during the NBA Draft. So, what questions do you want answered tonight or at least at some point this offseason? Here's a few off the top of my head.

• If TJ Ford is coming to town, do the Pacers want to take DJ Augustin at 11?
• Will the Pacers go big at 11, and take Mario Chalmers at 17?
• Do they trade down from 11 to take the big player they want and gather up another asset or two?
• With TJ Ford coming in, if the best player left is a wing player, do the Pacers grab him?
• We know Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, OJ Mayo, and Kevin Love won't slip, but what about Eric Gordon, Jerryd Bayless and Russell Westbrook? Could one of them fall into the Pacers' lap at 11?
• After recent comments about Jamaal Tinsley, there must be a plan in place to ensure Tins doesn't return to the Fieldhouse. What's the plan?
• Where will DJ White end up? I can't help but think he could bring a Jason Maxiell impact to some lucky team.
• What will the Pacers do at 41? George Hill?
• If Mike Green isn't picked, will the Pacers be able to sign him up after the draft?
• Seriously, are the Pacers actually trading Jermaine O'Neal? After a solid year of non-stop speculation about deals with nearly every team in the league, has it really happened?

Don't forget the Draft Party tonight, which should be plenty entertaining with all the action surrounding the potential JO trade and the possibility of two new Pacers being drafted by the 17th pick. Here's a nice Pacer-centric draft preview from Bruno with comments from Bird on some of the prospects. No answers, though. Those will be revealed later tonight.

The Orlando pre-draft camp is where projected second round draft picks go to try and work their way into the first round AND a guaranteed contract. It is also a place for those projected outside the draft to get noticed and possibly drafted this year or next.

That may be the case for a couple of local players who most assume will return to college for another year. Jeff Rabjohns reports that former Broad Ripple Rocket and current IUPUI Jaguar, George Hill wasted no time turning scouts' heads in Orlando. Former Pike/Cathedral and IU player, Robert Vaden, now at UAB, also drew some attention. Real happy for to see Hill earn some recognition. The kid has always been a silent assassin with the ball in his hands. He never garnered the D1 attention I thought he deserved out of high school, so it is nice to see him continue to work and prove people wrong.

Draft Express has some great reports from Orlando. Their Day Two and Day One reports also include high praise of George Hill. Also, this report has video with an interview of Pacers scout Kevin Mackey.

Finally, Pacers GM David Morway checks in from Orlando at Pacers.com with his thoughts on the camp and all of the local prospects in the draft. He emphasizes that this camp is not do or die for the players.

This is just one piece of the puzzle. We talk about it all the time, that their body of work is very important because it's what they've done over a period of time, whether it's one, two, three or four years. There are different camps, workouts, psychological exams, all the skills tests, background checks – all these things are taken into account to make the decision. This is one piece of that equation.