J. O'Neal excited about next season

KG-MVP21 · 08-24-2006, 08:55 AM

Jermaine O'Neal watched patiently from afar this summer as Indiana Pacers officials made moves to improve a team that underachieved and had chemistry problems last season.

O'Neal, the team's centerpiece, believes the franchise has moved toward becoming a contender again.
The Pacers, whose 41-41 record was their worst in a regular season since 2000-01, have added 11 players during the offseason.
"You can't only look at the move to get Al (Harrington) back here. You have to look at everything they've done so far," O'Neal said Wednesday in a phone interview. "What they've done so far should answer a lot of questions on what direction this franchise is headed in.
"Getting Al, along with the combination of the other guys, will make us a tough team in the East. We'll be an exciting, young, talented team this season."
O'Neal kept a particularly close eye on the Harrington situation. They are close friends and were teammates for four seasons. Harrington switched to O'Neal's agent, Arn Tellem, several weeks ago, and the players communicated frequently throughout Harrington's drawn-out free agent process. O'Neal wanted Harrington to return to the Pacers last winter when the team was shopping Ron Artest.
"He's no longer 'Baby Al,' " O'Neal said. "There's no need to use that name anymore. He brings excellent leadership in the locker room and he's familiar with the organization. He's also going to give us 19 (points) and 10 (rebounds) a game. He did what I did when I left Portland and was able to get my career going with another team. The Pacers are fortunate that they were able to get him back. Al's going to cause a lot of trouble for other teams matchup-wise."
Harrington could start at power forward with O'Neal at center and second-year player Danny Granger at small forward as the Pacers try to play faster this season.
O'Neal said he would prefer playing his most minutes at power forward but will play center if it's "our best chance to win." O'Neal said he doesn't plan on lowering his weight to 250 pounds as he said earlier this summer. He currently weighs 256 pounds and he doesn't want to "get much smaller than that."
The Pacers may not be done making moves. They could trade for a big man or get a perimeter shooter.
"Every other piece they add will take us to another level on where we compete at in the league," O'Neal said. "Our only goal is to win a championship. That's what we're here to play for and that's what we're shooting for."

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08-24-2006, 08:55 AM	#1 (permalink)
KG-MVP21 All Star Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Catalonia Posts: 2,503	Jermaine O'Neal watched patiently from afar this summer as Indiana Pacers officials made moves to improve a team that underachieved and had chemistry problems last season. O'Neal, the team's centerpiece, believes the franchise has moved toward becoming a contender again. The Pacers, whose 41-41 record was their worst in a regular season since 2000-01, have added 11 players during the offseason. "You can't only look at the move to get Al (Harrington) back here. You have to look at everything they've done so far," O'Neal said Wednesday in a phone interview. "What they've done so far should answer a lot of questions on what direction this franchise is headed in. "Getting Al, along with the combination of the other guys, will make us a tough team in the East. We'll be an exciting, young, talented team this season." O'Neal kept a particularly close eye on the Harrington situation. They are close friends and were teammates for four seasons. Harrington switched to O'Neal's agent, Arn Tellem, several weeks ago, and the players communicated frequently throughout Harrington's drawn-out free agent process. O'Neal wanted Harrington to return to the Pacers last winter when the team was shopping Ron Artest. "He's no longer 'Baby Al,' " O'Neal said. "There's no need to use that name anymore. He brings excellent leadership in the locker room and he's familiar with the organization. He's also going to give us 19 (points) and 10 (rebounds) a game. He did what I did when I left Portland and was able to get my career going with another team. The Pacers are fortunate that they were able to get him back. Al's going to cause a lot of trouble for other teams matchup-wise." Harrington could start at power forward with O'Neal at center and second-year player Danny Granger at small forward as the Pacers try to play faster this season. O'Neal said he would prefer playing his most minutes at power forward but will play center if it's "our best chance to win." O'Neal said he doesn't plan on lowering his weight to 250 pounds as he said earlier this summer. He currently weighs 256 pounds and he doesn't want to "get much smaller than that." The Pacers may not be done making moves. They could trade for a big man or get a perimeter shooter. "Every other piece they add will take us to another level on where we compete at in the league," O'Neal said. "Our only goal is to win a championship. That's what we're here to play for and that's what we're shooting for."