NFL owner meetings get predictably fraternal. Maybe this is why Goodell is calling in the PE boys!

NBA playoffs have been relentless and Wednesday was no different. Imagine these games with an NBC Primetime intro segment. Coming next year.

MLB speaking of NBC. ESPN is officially out of the Baseball Business. NBC is in negotiations to take over Sunday Night Baseball. After all they did for Sunday Night Football, basically robbing Monday Night of its spotlight, NBC has a huge opportunity to do the same for America’s Pastime.

We just watched the Draft Lottery, and it was riddled with all the same East Dumpster Fires. Wizards. Hornets. Nets. Welcome to the club Philly! Yet, it’s the Indiana Pacers up one in the ECF. Isn’t there only one way to build a winner in the NBA? Don’t you have to draft near the top for consecutive years? NOT SO FAST MY FRIENDS.

Born in Williamsburg, longtime Pacers owner Herb Simon made his money developing shopping malls. He’s a bit of an NBA anomaly. Simon’s owned the Pacers since 1983 (pre-Reggie), and despite owning one of the smallest franchises in the league, he’s a true NYC business brawler, independently wealthy, and a fervent anti-tanking opponent. Simon has overseen a Pacers organization that developed Reggie Miller, partnered with Larry Bird through the Ron Artest/Jermaine O’Neal years, introduced peak Paul George to the league, and now is three games away from the NBA finals. That’s a ton of success from a tiny market without ever bottoming out. Per Simon:

“We’re not a franchise that’s going to dump (games) to get a better (draft) pick. We’re going to try to win every game. Sometimes, we’ll develop rookies who may cost us a game, but we’ll never go into a game to lose while I’m an owner. I don’t believe in that. Some teams do, but I don’t believe in that.”

Since drafting BIG RIG Rik Smits 2nd in 1988, the highest Pacer selection has been 6th (Benedict Mathurin, 2022). PAUSE. That’s incredible. That’s multiple decades of playoff success without signing prominent free agents or drafting in the top 5. In a league crashing into its Parity Era, where teams will struggle to keep championship cores together, does Indiana’s formula for sustained success give them a distinct advantage? There’s clearly an organizational wisdom here for building teams that’s never been present in Atlanta (or half the league).

I won’t go through how the Pacers robbed Tyrese Haliburton from Sacramento. Team building always requires a stroke of luck. But the scouting, and belief, that Haliburton (drafted 12th) could turn into a Face of the Franchise is something that 29 other teams could have seen. Filling the roster with perfect puzzle pieces from other teams, the mid/late lottery, and well executed trades has this version of Indiana setup for another possible Finals. If they get there, they might just meet Pacers South (OKC).