Reloaded: The Final Chapter for Adam Morrison.

[RMJH4]

Game 13 Phoenix Suns 118 - 88 Indiana Pacers



The Suns took a bad beating tonight, as their scoring and defensive woes continue.

Suns Starters
E. Bledsoe
G. Dragic
G. Green
Mark. Morris
M. Plumlee

Pacers Starters
D. Sloan
A. Morrison
C. Copeland
L. Scola
R. Hibbert

Game Leaders
Pts - 28 - E. Bledsoe (Suns)
Rebs - 13 - Mark. Morris (Suns)
Asts - 6 - D. Sloan (Pacers)
Stls - 3 - Marc. Morris (Suns)
Blks - 3 - M. Plumlee (Suns)

Player of the Game
Markieff Morris
21pts, 13 rebs, 2 ast,2 stls, 2 blks


Ammo's Angle



Statline: 11 pts, 1 reb, 1 ast in 27 mins.

"Man we are in trouble. A lot of our weaknesses were shown up tonight. Allowing 118 points is hard to take. We had a superb performance against the Hornets yesterday, and then dropped the ball tonight. The 3 PG lineup for the Suns really gave us the run around. We just don't have enough quick and fully fit guards to stop them. Our wings, myself included where constantly beaten to the rim by Bledsloe, Dragic and Thomas. I really don't know where we go from here. We desperately need numbers back in the rotation soon. CJ and Rodney are training again at the weekend though."

[RMJH4]

Cavs, Blazers to make push for Hibbert

With the news that the Dallas Mavericks have acquired Rajon Rondo last night, the West is looking even more stacked. The Mavericks are currently 2nd in the West, with a 9-5 record. The Rockets are top with a 9-4 record. The Rockets are now pushing to acquire Corey Brewer after losing out on Rondo.

The Trailblazers who are currently 3rd with an 8-5 record really dont want to lose sight off the top spots in the West, and with Golden State catching fire with new Coach Steve Kerr in 4th, it could be time to make a move. The Blazers chased Hibbert when he was last a free agent, and almost got him. They instead got Robin Lopez who has been fantastic in the last 2 seasons. However Hibbert paired with Aldridge could give one of the most dominant froncourts in the NBA. And certainly be a great matchup with the new West favorite Mavericks, who boast Nowitzki and Chandler.

The Pacers are struggling in the East as expected without Paul George and are reportedly looking to unload Hibbert, West and George Hill. Hibbert could be had for something like Lopez and maybe Wes Matthews, who could become a central point on offence for the Pacers. But in order to get Matthews instead of McCollum/Dorrell Wright, the Pacers might have to add in something like, well say ex Blazer Adam Morrison.

Morrison has had a superb comeback so far. Averaging 13ppg 3.2 reb and 2.2 asts. If he continues to improve his defense, he could come close to replacing Matthews production. It would be a risky move for the Blazers, but in order to gain Hibbert, somethings got to give.

The other team in the mix for Hibbert is the Cavs. LeBron and co are currently 7th in the East with a 7-6 record. Its pretty obvious already that Andy Varejao is not a defensive enforcer in the middle. The Cavs defense has been porous so far. LeBron cant cover everyones mistakes. Kevin Love is not the defender Chris Bosh was. Not even close.

A package of Waiters and Varejao for Hibbert could work. Id imagine the Cavs would love to have Rodney Stuckey included in that deal too. The Cavs would include a few future 1sts and it could be a done deal.

So what do the Pacers get out of all this? Well gaining Waiters could be beneficial long term and give Paul George his new sidekick. A scorer and decent defender, Waiters and George could be difficult to stop as they mature. Varejao is a servicable big, and has only one year remaining on his contract. Their defense will suffer but they desperately need scoring. And with that they may even sneak into the playoffs this season.

As currently constructed they may not. Even with Stuckey and CJ Miles returning soon, they wouldnt have the same impact as Dion Waiters being the offensive focus.

If they go with the Blazers deal, Wes Matthews could provide some 15- 20 ppg and tough defense to go with it. Robin Lopez is the big bonus here for the Pacers. He's only slightly below Roy Hibberts level of defense. His rebounding is top notch and can score when necessary too. Alongside David West they could be a tough matchup for any frontcourt. I think this is the slightly better overall deal for the Pacers, but longterm the Cavs deal is better.

With the Blazers deal they get 2 players who could be in Indiana longterm, whereas the Cavs deal may only be one longterm option in Waiters. But what really matters here is whether LeBron signs off on trading away his buddy Varejao.

[RMJH4]

Game 14 Indiana Pacers 94 - 98 Dallas Mavericks



Rondo made his debut tonight, and rarely gave the Pacers uncontested shots.

Pacers Starters
D. Sloan
A. Morrison
C. Copeland
L. Scola
R. Hibbert

Mavericks Starters
R. Rondo
M. Ellis
C. Parsons
D. Nowitzki
T. Chandler

Game Leaders
Pts - 25 - D. Nowitzki (Mavs)
Rebs - 15 - T. Chandler (Mavs)
Asts - 10 - R. Rondo (Mavs)
Stls - 4 - M. Ellis (Mavs)
Blks - 4 - R. Hibbert (Pacers)

Player of the Game
M. Ellis
24pts, 6 rebs, 1 ast, 4 stls


Ammo's Angle



Statline: 10 pts, 7 rebs, 3 asts, 2 stls in 27 mins.

"With the recent trade activity, we hoped to capatilise against the Mavs fitting in Rondo to their setup. But with All Stars like that, they never miss a beat. We knew he cant shoot, but he always penetrates and draws the defense. His passing was on point and he set Monta and Dirk up for some easy looks. They are a truly rounded team with Rondo now. We still made a helluva fight of it though. Roy Hibbert was our battering ram, and he scored 22 points. Scola had 16, and we had a nice balance after that. But to be winning games we need at least 2 guys scoring 20. CJ Miles, Rodney, Watson and West are practicing full court now, so its only a matter of time before they are back in uniform."

[RMJH4]

Game 15 Indiana Pacers 104 - 105 San Antonio Spurs



Hand down, man down. Morrison drains 3 of his season high 24 points tonight.

Pacers Starters
D. Sloan
A. Morrison
C. Copeland
L. Scola
R. Hibbert

Spurs Starters
T. Parker
D. Green
K. Leonard
B. Diaw
T. Duncan


Game Leaders
Pts - 24 - A. Morrison (Pacers)
Rebs - 14 - T. Duncan (Spurs)
Asts - 9 - T. Parker (Spurs)
Stls - 4 - D. Sloan (Pacers)
Blks - 5 - R. Hibbert (Pacers)

Player of the Game

T. Duncan

22pts, 14 rebs, 4 asts, 2 stls, 3 blks


Ammo's Angle



Statline: 24 pts, 4 rebs, 2 asts in 27 mins.

"2 Heartbreaking losses in a row. Timmy D keeps on turning back the clock with another awesome performance. He nailed the game winning free throws with 2.5 seconds left. They have so much strength in depth. I wouldnt look past them to repeat as champs. I gave it everythin tonight. This could be my last game starting so I had to come out gunning. 24 points wasnt bad. I hit 5 threes and gave Leonard a little run around. But man was that difficult!"

[smpipkin]

You mentioned that it could be your last game starting but not in starting lineup? And 2 heartbreakers in a row but final score shows pacers win?

[RMJH4]

Quote: Originally Posted by smpipkin

You mentioned that it could be your last game starting but not in starting lineup? And 2 heartbreakers in a row but final score shows pacers win?

Sorry well spotted! Have edited now! I was pasting from a template and didn't edit it properly. I input the score the wrong way around!

[RMJH4]

Game 16 Orlando Magic 95 - 122 Indiana Pacers



With most of the Pacers roster returning tonight, they blitzed the Magic.

Magic Starters
V. Oladipo
E. Fournier
T. Harris
C. Frye
N. Vucevic

Pacers Starters
C. Watson
A. Morrison
C. Copeland
D. West
R. Hibbert

Game Leaders
Pts - 26 - C. Miles (Pacers)
Rebs - 12 - N. Vucevic (Magic)
Asts - 9 - C. Watson (Pacers)
Stls - 4 - C. Watson (Pacers)
Blks - 3 - R. Hibbert (Pacers)

Player of the Game
CJ Watson
20pts, 5 rebs, 9 asts, 4 stls


Ammo's Angle



Statline: 13 pts, 2 rebs, 2 asts in 23 mins.

"Back to winning ways at last. We had D West, CJ Watson, CJ Miles and Rodney Stuckey back tonight. I was particularly happy that I still got 23 mins playing time, and played well. I'm under serious pressure now, so I have got to keep scoring over 10 a game. The Magic were lacklustre tonight, they have been punching above their weight in chasing a playoff place so far, but tonight they were brought back to reality. Their rookie Aaron Gordon has just been ruled out for the rest of the season, so understandibly they were a bit rattled. We are off to Cleveland now to face LeBron and co."

[RMJH4]

Game 17 Indiana Pacers 110 - 131 Cleveland Cavaliers



Morrison gets the better of Marion enroute to an And1 play.

Pacers Starters
CJ Watson
A. Morrison
C. Copeland
D. West
R. Hibbert

Cavs Starters
K. Irving
S. Marion
L. James
K. Love
A. Varejao


Game Leaders
Pts - 29 - L. James (Cavs)
Rebs - 12 - R. Hibbert (Pacers)
Asts - 9 - L. James (Cavs)
Stls - 4 - K. Irving (Cavs)
Blks - 3 - L. James (Cavs)

Player of the Game
L. James
29pts, 10 rebs, 9 asts, 2 stls, 3 blks


Ammo's Angle



Statline: 11 pts, 4 rebs, 1 ast, 1 stl in 23 mins.

"Wow. What can you say. They call him the King for a reason. Its on nights like this you see exactly how much we need Paul George. We had nobody who could even get close to slowing LeBron down. He almost had a triple double. And if he didnt sit the whole 4th quarter he would have. I struggled to play well in my 23 broken minutes. 4-10 shooting is not going to be enough to keep this amount of playing time. Stuckey had 14, Miles had 14, and Cope had 12. Have to work on my defense some more, Marion shouldnt have scored 12 on me."