Indiana Pacers head coach Frank Vogel is always optimistic about his team, but he knows things are going to change this season. In a Q&A with 8 Points, 9 Seconds' Jalen Bishop, Vogel acknowledged that this offseason has created new challenges:
Bishop: How was your summer?
Vogel: I’ve had better summers in terms of my roster [laughs]. We had some tough losses with Lance going to Charlotte and Paul going down with an injury. Personally, I had a great summer.
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When you lose two great defenders like Paul George and Lance, do you still plan to be among the best defenses? Can this system compensate their losses?
In some ways, yes. I don’t think we can be the same defensive team without Paul George. Paul George is just a gifted guy that has versatility that no one else in the league has — in terms of playing ones, twos of threes, and really just blanket another team’s top perimeter scorer. Not having him is gonna weaken us defensively. We’re not blind to that.
But we’re gonna still demand extremely high level of defensive efficiency, and we still hope to among the best — and intend to be among the best — defensive teams in the NBA.
Vogel isn't crazy. He's confident in his guys -- in the interview, he called Rodney Stuckey "an electrifying playmaker" and said he expects the team to be better from long range because of C.J. Miles, Damjan Rudez and more minutes for Chris Copeland. He also said George Hill's role will "change dramatically," as he'll need to be more aggressive and carry a bigger load. Realistically, though, he's aware that this team just lost its two best creators, one of whom just happens to be one of the best wing defenders on the planet. It's preseason and everyone's pumped up, but Vogel and Indiana are going to have to make some serious adjustments.
