--The Pacers have added some insurance on the wing in case shooting guard Mike Dunleavy has any setbacks in his right knee rehabilitation. The Pacers signed combo guard Luther Head to a one-year, partially-guaranteed contract. "Luther is a guy we have had our eye on," Pacers president Larry Bird said. "He can shoot. He has speed and quickness, and he will fit in well in our up-tempo game. "I think he's going to be a good addition to our basketball team."
Head had his best season in 2006-07 when he averaged 10.9 points and shot 44.1 percent from three-point range for the Houston Rockets. Head joins a roster that already has four point guards and four wing players. He'll likely get the majority of his playing time at shooting guard.
--Former Pacers forward Jermaine O'Neal didn't take the news of co-owner Mel Simon's death too well. O'Neal, who spent nine years in Indiana, had a close relationship with Simon.
"He'd always give me a hug," said former Pacer Jermaine O'Neal. "It was like a father meeting a child, or the first newborn. That's how the greetings were."
--Unlike Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Pacers co-owner Mel Simon preferred to stay in the background. Simon routinely attended Pacers' games up until his health started to suffer a few years ago. But rather than sit courtside, Simon sat up in his suite, away from the spotlight. He once said he didn't like going into the locker room because it was "bad luck."
"He wasn't there to discourage things," former player and current Pacers director of player personnel Mel Daniels said. "He was there for info and to know what's going on. He wasn't going to meddle and change anybody. He just wanted to know about ballplayers. It's a tough loss for the city and for the NBA."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "You're talking about a pioneer and trendsetter. This is a guy who wrote the blueprint on how to do things in a classy way. He is a juggernaut in our business world." -- Former Pacer Jermaine O'Neal, on Pacers' co-owner Mel Simon, who died at the age of 82.
