Top > Sport > 2006 > January > 2006-01-24

Deepest Bench Doesn?t Translate into Much

Mirror mirror on the wall who is the finest bench of them all? Bench contribution is crucial for a team looking to win the title. Just ask the San Antonio Spurs. Last season they had the deepest bench in the league, which gave them the edge over the Pistons in last year?s finals. It?s ironic that the team with the deepest bench is not seriously regarded as posing any serious threat to win the championship.

That?s right, I?m talking about the Indiana Pacers. Think about it, they have Sarunas Jasikevicius, Danny Granger, Fred Jones and David Harrison. Jasikevicius has done exactly what the Pacers signed him to do. Hit shots, and be another leader. He won three Euroleague championships, and knows what it takes to win. He too is averaging 9 ppg to go along with 3 apg. He has one of the best shots in the league and is atop the free throw percentage in the league, tenth to be exact.

Jones has been a dynamo off the bench for Indy. He is their spark and has shown that he can fill it up offensively. With O?Neal back his production was off a bit, but any Pacers fan knows how explosive he is and that he can score. He is averaging 9.7 ppg this season and is really showing management that he deserves to be re-signed at the end of this year.