Sonstiges » antly for the future of Canadian hoops.

After dealing with the three of the Wests elite teams, the Indiana Pacers finally get a look at the other end of the rival conferences spectrum when a five-game Western swing continues with a visit to the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday night.The Pacers are coming off a humiliating, 142-106 drubbing at the hands of the Golden State Warriors on Monday night in Oakland, Calif. Klay Thompson scorched the visitors for 60 points in the win.The sound defeat was the second in three games for the Pacers on their Western excursion. They were waxed 131-109 at Portland last Wednesday before rebounding to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 111-102 on Sunday.Indiana (10-11) will be motivated not only by the drubbing against the Warriors but also a 116-96 defeat handed them by the Suns when the clubs met Nov. 18 in Indianapolis.The Suns bench dominated that game, with reserves Brandon Knight (17), Jared Dudley (16), Alan Williams (15), Leandro Barbosa (13) and Tyler Ulis (10) all scoring in double figures.Phoenixs backups outscored their Indiana counterparts 78-35 that night, taking advantage of a Pacers club that elected to promote its most productive reserve, C.J. Miles, to the starting lineup to replace injured Paul George.We went through the motions, Pacers coach Nate McMillan said after the game. It was bad out there.Indiana responded from that loss with one of its most impressive wins of the season, a 115-111 overtime victory at Oklahoma City.The Pacers are 7-3 following a defeat this season.The schedule could help the visitors improve upon that stat Wednesday night. While the Pacers were resting in their hotel Tuesday, the Suns were dueling the Jazz in Utah, and losing 112-105.Coincidentally, the Suns (6-15) also were coming off a shellacking against the Warriors, 138-109. They responded with a competitive effort Tuesday, rallying from a 20-point halftime deficit into a 103-all tie late in the game before getting outfinished 9-2 by the Jazz.Afterward, Phoenix coach Earl Watson once again applauded the effort of his reserve crew.That (second) unit came in and played selfless, Watson said of a bench that once again included Knight (15 points) and Barbosa (13), along with backup center Alex Len (14). They gave up all their energy on defense, and offensively they moved the ball, created the tempo and played amazing perimeter defense.Because of the balanced attack, no Sun played more than 28 minutes on the first night of the back-to-back.Phoenix is 1/3 in the second game of consecutive-night scheduling this season, the most recent being a 120-105 loss at Philadelphia on the night after they won at Indiana.The game matches one of the leagues best shooting teams (Indiana, 45.5 percent from the field) against one of the leagues worst defensive clubs (Phoenix, 46.4 percent allowed).The Suns went up against a similarly efficient Utah squad on Tuesday night and watched as the Jazz converted 49.3 percent of their shots and 44.4 percent of their 3-pointers.The day off no doubt benefitted the Pacers, who have seen three key players -- George, Miles and Myles Turner -- return from injuries during this trip.They were all on deck for the Sunday win over the Clippers, contributing 40 points to the victory. 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Gives them a terrific shot at retaining Chris Paul and they get a top-notch coach who will handle the pressure of a big market like L.A. quite easily. The Celtics get a first round pick in 2015, and more importantly begin the process of dismantling their team to acquire assets for a rebuild/restructure. It will be interesting to see how things are handled right now with Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce & Rajon Rondo as well as the hiring of a new coach. GM Danny Ainge is a bold/progressive thinker and will try to be active if/when possible. Right move for both teams. 2. TORONTO RAPTORS - PLAYOFFS?: Think about it for a second. Miami, Indiana, Chicago, Brooklyn and New York - Put those five in the Top 5 in whatever order youd like for next season. After that, its a crap shoot for the bottom three spots of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Milwaukee, Atlanta and Boston (the other three playoff teams from this past season) are all going to have a different and possibly weaker look next season. The six, seven and eight spots are up for grabs. Im as curious as all of you what the Raps decide to do in the coming months with their team building plan. Do they try to develop a winning/playoff environment during the 2013-14 season or go the developmental route and try to acquire assets for down the line? Your guess is as good as mine. This Thursday nights NBA Draft will be our first look at what the direction will be. 3. ANDRE IGUODALA (Nuggets): Opting out of his contract and will be a free agent. The trade to Denver was a great opportunity to showcase his game in an up tempo style that suited his game. Hes a verssatile athlete who plays both ways well and hard for you.dddddddddddd Hes got lots of fans round the league and hes proven to be a valuable member of both the 76ers and the Nuggets and has the Olympics experience under his belt. Hes polished and hell be a target for teams with cap space if he keeps his salary/term demands at a fair/reasonable level. 4. CANADIANS IN THE NBA DRAFT (Anthony Bennett-UNLV / Kelly Olynyk-Gonzaga / Myck Kabongo-Texas): If you get a chance, check out Mondays USA Today. Theres a neat article on the growth of basketball in Canada. Well likely see three more Canadians drafted on Thursday night. Bennett and Olynyk are first rounders and Kabongo is all over the board in the 2nd round, depending on who you talk with. Im excited to see how it unfolds and more importantly for the future of Canadian hoops. The best is yet to come! 5. DWANE CASEY (Toronto Raptors): Announced last week that hell be back as the head coach. Beyond staff decisions, player development and putting together the roster with GM Masai Ujiri, a huge component of improving the team in 2013-14 will be how they perform/execute in the fourth quarter of games. Situational basketball performance is the make/break aspect of teams and coaches. Im sure Casey and his new staff will take significant time between now and the start of evaluating each and every fourth quarter this past season where the Raptors let a lead slip away that resulted in a loss. Way too many times this took place and it will be the defining judgment piece for this upcoming season. How you perform under the pressure of the fourth quarter spotlight in the NBA is usually the make/break aspect of a team, season and coaching staff. Control to the best of your ability what you can control and move those chess pieces in an appropriate/timely manner and the narrative of a season becomes more fun to watch. ' ' '