The NBA regular season is over, and the fierce playoffs are back in action. But as in the previous three years, the Pacers have entered a state of vacation after the regular season. The Pacers have failed to make the playoffs for the fourth year in a row, and this is the second year in a row that the team has been locked out of the playoffs since Bird took over.

Of course, Bird hasn't been without nothing this season. At least he really saw the potential in Holiday and saw the miracle of winning 10 of the last 14 fights. Most importantly, he saw a perfect choice for the manager.

After the regular season, the Pacers picked up a 10th pick in the draft pick. The Pacers have been very awkward in recent years, they are always just one step away from the playoffs, and the high draft pick often doesn't have much to do with them. This position is neither up nor down, and the Pacers can neither select super-rookies nor attract big-name stars to join.

That's why a lot of teams are going to just put it on the wrong side now, because it's really not good for a rebuild.

This year's 10th pick is better than last season's 13th pick, but to be honest, it's not much better. John. Wall and DeMarcus. Cousins, the Kentucky twins, will certainly not be able to land in Indianapolis. And a few popular fried chickens in this year's draft, Evan . Turner, Greg. Monroe, Wesley. Johnson and others are also very unlikely to fall to the tenth pick.

This kind of no-go draft pick is the most challenging for the team, because it means you have to pick out a real talent from a bunch of less special talents from your college years. They drafted Holiday with the 13th pick last year, and this season, under Henson's guidance, the Pacers are targeting the sophomore from NCAA Division II. George.

From the beginning of the season, Henson and Silas took notice of George. And when Henson became the team's official assistant coach, Silas continued to send Henson videos of George's games. So for Paul. George, Henson can be said to know this guy inside out.

At this year's joint tryout, Paul. George's quality is indeed satisfying. In Daniel. Granger can be a very good "3-and-D" player next to him, just filling in the Pacers' lack of strength at the No. 2 position.

Of course, in addition to having Granger and George coexist, Bird also came up with the idea of using Daniel. Granger and Paul. George went to trade the Nets' star center, Brooke. Lopez, however, the idea was strongly opposed by Henson.

First, Granger must not move now. He's the pinnacle of the locker room, with both seniority and quality, and if he's gone, the entire Pacers team will be lacking in leaders. The veterans have no leadership temperament, and the young people are too young. Looking at what the team was like without Granger that past season, Henson didn't dare to try again.

Second, Henson firmly believed that Paul. George would be a much better player than both Granger and Lopez.

"He's going to be more than just an All-Star!" This is something that Henson has repeatedly emphasized in front of Bird.

Can a second-tier star surpass NBA All-Star caliber levels? If anyone else had said something like that, Bird would have laughed playfully. But if Henson says so, Bird will have to think twice.

The joint tryout was in full swing, and unusually, reporters did not find out at this joint trial that Pacers head coach Jim Brown. O'Brien's Shadow.

Leading the team were Henson and Frank. Vogel, Jim. O'Brien was photographed on vacation in Hawaii.

It's not unusual for the head coach of the team not to come to the joint tryouts. Does Jackson have time to come to this place now and watch the youngsters play?

But the Lakers are a championship team, and they don't have too much of a task in the draft, so they don't need to worry about the "Zen master". The Pacers are different, and the more awkward the pick, the more we need to work together to find the most suitable player. As a result, O'Brien was on vacation like a championship coach, while the two assistant coaches were busy.

At first, O'Brien thought that Bird didn't need to operate the draft himself, but later he realized that things didn't seem to be so simple. It's more like I've been left alone, completely removed from basketball affairs!

Looking at the golden sand and blue sky in front of him, O'Brien suddenly lost his mood. Could it be that his last 14 games and 10 wins last season still didn't impress Bird?

Bird isn't stupid, and he knows exactly who the Pacers should be credited with their last-minute excellence last season. It can't be said that O'Brien doesn't have any credit at all, but his contribution is definitely not as big as Henson's!

And after this season, Donnie. Walsh's three-year deadline for O'Brien was also reached. For three years, O'Brien didn't do anything other than bring three embarrassing draft picks to the Pacers.

While O'Brien was still sitting under a coconut tree thinking, his cell phone suddenly rang.

O'Brien saw Bird's name on the caller ID, and his mood instantly hit rock bottom.

"Bird...... Is everything going well with the joint tryout......" O'Brien's voice was trembling slightly, in fact his whole body was trembling slightly.

At first, he thought Bird wouldn't let him handle the draft because he didn't need to do it himself, but now that he got the call, he seemed to understand everything.

Larry. Bird also made this decision after a long discussion with his assistant Pritchard, and he gave O'Brien three years, which is already considered benevolent.

"I'm sorry, Jim, you're out." Bird originally thought of a lot of pleasantries, but as soon as the phone called, Bird instantly didn't want to talk more nonsense.

O'Brien's head suddenly "buzzed", it wasn't the first time he had been fired, but there had never been a dismissal so sudden.

Seeing that O'Brien didn't speak for a long time, Bird continued, "Last night and this morning, I had a long meeting with the higher-ups. We agreed that the results were not up to expectations and that something seemed to be wrong with the team's construction. After discussion and consideration, the management decided to change the head coach. ”

Bird's words were simple and clear, but they were very heartfelt. O'Brien knew that if Bird got to the point, it meant there was no turning back.

It all came so fast, and just a few minutes ago, O'Brien was enjoying his sunny vacation. But now, he has become an outer, becoming the first person to be out of the game this year!

"With that said, the rest is up to Frank. Vogel!? O'Brien asked aloud in surprise, apparently unable to accept the reality. O'Brien was well aware of Vogel's strength, but he couldn't accept that his assistant coach had taken his place.

O'Brien seems to have forgotten that he himself was an assistant coach who had a great success in the NCAA and struggled in the NBA. Piertino has only officially started his career as a head coach.

This is the professional law of the coaching circle!

Although being pushed down by Vogel made O'Brien a little angry, Vogel was still the one he brought out himself. Unexpectedly, Bird's next words made O'Brien even more unacceptable.

"No, Frank is still the team's assistant coach. The person who will take your place is Henson. Joe. ”

It's not hard to imagine that O'Brien must be at a loss for words right now.