The Pacers could return only one of their three point guards from last season.
Jarrett Jack, who started the final month of the season, is a restricted free agent and the Pacers will only go so far financially to re-sign him. Travis Diener, the third point guard, still has yet to say if he'll opt out of the final year of his contract. The Pacers don't have to worry, though, they'll have several point guards to choose from when they select at No. 13.
Most scouts consider this the deepest draft in years at the point guard spot. Spain's Ricky Rubio, UCLA's Jrue Holiday, Memphis' Tyreke Evans, Syracuse's Jonny Flynn and Brandon Jennings, the former prep star that played in Italy last season, will likely be gone by the 13th pick. That will leave Wake Forest's Jeff Teague, North Carolina's Ty Lawson and VCU's Eric Maynor on the board for Indiana officials to choose from. Lawson may not be as flashy as some of the other prospects, but some say he's best true point guard of the group.
Lawson has high expectations for himself in the NBA.
"One of the best point guards in the league," he said. "Probably one of the top three, an All-Star and playing in the NBA Finals. That's where I plan to be in less than five years."
SEASON HIGHLIGHT: Swingman Mike Dunleavy's knee injury helped forward Danny Granger burst onto the scene this season. The fourth-year forward made his first All-Star appearance and finished sixth in the league in scoring. Granger became the first player in NBA history to improve his scoring at least five points a game three straight seasons.
TURNING POINT: Holding onto big leads was a foreign concept for the Pacers. They blew 15 double-digit leads. Most of those blown leads came early in the season when the seven new players were still getting use to coach Jim O'Brien's coaching style. The Pacers would have made the playoffs if they had won four of those 15 games.
