Setting The Pace: A Pacers Podcast Blue Wire

Alex Golden and Mike Facci end the Mailbag series with these 6+ questions! Thanks everyone for sending them in...if you would like your questions read on air for the next mailbag, send them into @AlexGoldenNBA on Twitter. It is the BEST and ONLY place to submit them and 100% guarantee that they will be read on the podcast!

1). Matthew Peck — To keep forward momentum of the team going what 3 area's do you want to see the team address and in what order do you place them in importance?

2). Mann Marsden — Ok man I love Myles but do you feel it's time we get a rebounder and lob threat over the pic and pop type center he just doesn't have it he can shoot but that's it? Also, if we can get a bigger wing defender who do we give up for them?

3). Bucket — Assuming pascal gets the max, how much room under the cap do we have to sign obi? Assuming we keep all other rotation players, and Jalen smith walks

4). Peetie Peete — I see folks on twitter warming up to the idea of a sign and trade for PG. Given that will probably never happen, the one interesting FA I do see on the market is Malik Monk. Is there someone on the roster you would be willing to trade for Monk that could actually get it done?

5). Josh Lovell — Is it a good idea to give Nembhard an extension starting in year 4? Pro- locks him in at a reasonable price, for multiple years; Con- probably puts us in the luxury tax from 25/26 (assuming a Pascal max contract), instead of just paying Drew his team option of 2 million in 25/26

6). Cole Eckert — What are your thoughts on the Jarace/Jax/Jalen Smith/ Obi Toppin conundrums. I think we'll keep 3 (Jarace, Obi, and IJax) and play 2 (Jarace and Obi).
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Alex Golden and Mike Facci are BACK for MORE Mailbag questions from the BEST fans in the world!

1). Jake Exline — If we run it back and have a healthy Mathurin and production out of Walker, do you think this is a championship contender? If not, what marginal move do you think we can make to get us there?

2). Rooster — Of our young players on rookie deals (Nembhard, Mathurin, Sheppard, Jarace, IJax) rank them in order of most likely to be extended to least. Also, how many players do you think we draft this year? Personally l'd like to see them try to trade 3 seconds to get a little higher.

3). Casey Johnson — To what extent do you feel the Pacers proved this year that playing fast in the playoffs is a winnable strategy? Do you think we will see other teams not worry about the rule of the playoffs slowing down?

4). Gentry Hudson — How do you feel the addition of a Fazoli's to Gainbridge Fieldhouse would enhance fan engagement?

5). Chase Sasin — Do you think tyrese, nembhard, and mathurin can be a good starting 1-3 for the future if mathurin came become a better defender?

6). Adam — Even though Nembhard is under contract, would you give him an extension if he is eligible this offseason? Also do you think Toppin made his case during this postseason that he should be brought back as well?
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Alex Golden and Mike Facci take your mailbag questions and answer them on the podcast. Lots of great topics (as per usual) and fun things to discuss as the offseason is closer than it appears!

1). Aaron M — Is there a consolidation trade target that would actually be worth it (with Mathurin, Jarace, iJax, Nesmith being likely outgoing candidates)?

2). Randall Wood — Would you re-sign Toppin and play Walker at the 3 or use the cap space to sign a solidified 3 like Hayward and play Walker at the 4?

3). Pacer Faithful — The 2 biggest areas for improvement this team showed in the playoffs in my opinion were toughness and defense. Can we improve those things through internal development or do we need to make a trade? Also. Do you guys think Tyrese should play for team USA given his injury?

4). David Matillo — Is Aaron Nesmith a starter at the beginning of next season?

5). Ricky Kelley — Do you think we will get a new set of jerseys? If so what would you want for a redesign?

6). J Bax — What can Tyrese improve on to elevate this teams floor? Also, Concerning next year's roster, and considering who we have right now; who's redundant?
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Alex Golden and Michael Facci are once again joined by Chad Buchanan, Pacers GM, to discuss:

-Ben Sheppard's rookie season
-What this team is missing to take that next step
-The offensive leap this team took and whether or not that was expected
-What I Jax needs to add to his game to earn the backup center spot
-Myles growth the last two seasons, his contract situation moving forward and how he can punish more teams when they take their centers off of him
-Obi's season overall and how well he fit in this year
-The impact Siakam had on the team this season and how that can be more impactful next season with a full 82 game season, assuming he is retained in free agency
-How Tyrese was able to handle criticism in his first playoff run and his ability to bounce back from rough games
-Tyrese playing with Team USA, what experiences are you hoping he takes from this opportunity
-The level of impact McConnell has on and off the court, the desire to keep him here long term and his potential extension this offseason
-the player whose development you were happiest with
-the player tool the biggest step forward this year
-the celebration that took place in the locker room after the Game 7 victory in MSG
-salary cap situation for the upcoming offseason
-Chad thanks the fans for their efforts all season long and especially in the playoffs

That was a great conversation with the General Manager of the Pacers, and we appreciate his answers to all of our questions. Thank you Setting The Pace fans for tuning into the show and for making us a part of your day. #LETSGOPACERS
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Alex Golden and Michael Facci are joined by Chad Buchanan, Pacers GM, to discuss:
-the past season and the run to the East Finals
-was there a specific moment you realized this team had something special?
-the truth on Tyrese's health during the playoff run, and where he actually was health wise
-navigating the All-NBA requirements and Haliburton's injury the remainder of the season/postseason
-what Chad learned from his team against Boston
-players physically needing to get in better shape for a deeper playoff run
-balancing the thought process of making moves to win now, versus staying the coarse and developing this core
-what Chad learned from his team when they got down in a series: 0-1 against Milwaukee, 0-2 against New York
-what Andrew Nembhard did this playoff run and whether or not he is the long term answer at the shooting guard spot
-Aaron Nesmith's growth from being traded here for Brogdon and exceeding expectations
-How the playoffs helped Jarace Walker despite not playing much & what the front office learned about his game after not playing in the rotation this season
-What Bennedict Mathurin can take from this playoff run, what they want to see from Mathurin next season, Mathurin taking receipts of the negative comments about his game on social media and a great story about Mathurin's new hobby of baking

Hope you enjoyed the conversation from Part 1 of our interview. Part 2 will be a little longer and have more questions about the rest of the roster. Thanks for tuning in and LETS GO PACERS!
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On Thursday afternoon, Alex was a guest on The Sports Show with Brett Rump, where he did a radio interview breaking down the season the Pacers had and looking forward to the future. Brett asks Alex whether or not Myles Turner can be the starting center on a Finals team, what Indiana needs to do to improve their roster and whether or not there will ever be a hot seat for Rick Carlisle.
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