Waiting for the Pacers vs. Pistons

Here are a few links to check out while waiting for the opening tip Tuesday night. Here's a tip, I saved the best for last.

• It seems like a near consensus for objective observers of the Pacers that this things needs to be blown up and rebuilt by any means necessary. In fact, I was asked to comment on rebuilding the team along with a few other bloggers from struggling teams. Check out my thoughts at Hardwood Paroxysm.
• This sobering IBJ article takes a look at the Pacers woes from a business perspective. Needless to say the finanial bottom line is hurting.
  The situation is so bad, said league insiders, NBA Commissioner David Stern is keeping an eye on it.
  
  "It's one of a handful of clubs the NBA is concerned about," said Marc Ganis, president of Chicago-based Sportscorp Ltd., a firm that works with several NBA teams on business operations. "This is something no one foresaw three or four years ago."
  
  Scott O'Neil, NBA senior vice president for team marketing and business operations, said, "We're putting a little extra time into the Pacers at this point."
  
  NBA account managers have come to Indianapolis to help with marketing, branding and sales, O'Neil said.
  
  "This is not a five-alarm fire," he said. "Our mind-set is, let's get the ship righted."
  After reading this, maybe David Stern will help facilitate some franchise-friendly moves, like landing local legend Eric Gordon.
• Don't miss the latest Blogger MVP/ROY rankings over at Pickaxe and Roll.
• This Pacers Notebook touches on Kareem Rush's knee problem and the Pacers point guard problem. That's all nice, but I'm just excited to see yet another question about Stephen Graham getting a chance. O'B continues to work the logjam/experience refrain, but soon the campaign to give Graham a real chance will sink into his subconscious mind and he'll be calling his name.
• Finally, check out this video! I couldn't find a copy to embed but it shows a kid with freakish hoop skills. When they start talking about the kid's VO2 capacity, the thing becomes truly amazing. Thinking about a long term rebuilding plan, we may have a point guard here. You know, if he keeps growing.