http://www.indy.com/posts/4318 en-us ls108 Personally bad as the Pacers have been the past two seasons.With Conseco Fieldhouse being less than 10 years old.It would cost the Simons way too much cash for them to leave here. If you want to blame someone you might want to start with Larry Bird and the silly ass contracts that they have been signing players to... Sun, 03 Feb 2008 01:37:35 -0500 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12763 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12763 joe.shearer I did not know that. I know of the old Spirits of St. Louis, but I wasn't aware of that arrangement. Interesting. I do agree with Herr Daytona, though, that the Pacers are unlikely to leave town just after a couple of bad seasons. They're still an institution in this city, even if they've fallen on hard times. Thu, 31 Jan 2008 20:22:24 -0500 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12586 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12586 randydaytona You're right they are getting paid by the ABA teams that came over to the NBA. But the Pacers will not be moving. If there is one thing I know its the Indiana Pacers. End this post. Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:23:52 -0500 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12554 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12554 JL Kato Joe: St. Louis. Now there's a story. It's my understanding that as a result of the NBA-ABA merger, the franchise holder for St. Louis is being paid annually for NOT being part of the merger and for not suing the leagues for excluding the city. Should anyone want to start up a team in St. Louis, the original franchise holder would have to agree to such a move AND would have to give up the annual payments. Now who would want to give up such a sweet deal? In effect, no NBA team will ever be based in St. Louis. Thu, 31 Jan 2008 14:54:29 -0500 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12549 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12549 obeythedoberman i'm not sure there's a less watchable team in the league. i cannot think of a single team without at least one star. please do not try and tell me Jermaine O'Neal is that guy cuz I got news for ya... he blows. they'll stay in Indy but they need to blow this team up. get rid of management and start from scratch. the current roster reads like a CBA team. trade Jermaine for whatever you can get (could've had Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom). keep a few of the workers like Dunleavy and pray that the others contracts are almost up. this current incarnation of the Pacers has no future. Thu, 31 Jan 2008 14:05:02 -0500 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12534 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12534 joe.shearer Vegas has been an NBA hotspot for the past couple of years, and OK City is pretty desperate for a team, I know. Maybe some other city, like St. Louis? It seems to me that the Pacers are pretty locked in, and I can't see the Simons moving the team, but that's just me. Money talks, as they say. Think Larry Bird or Donnie Walsh (or one or both of the Simons) read indy.com and can shed light on the subject? I'm down on the team a little bit too, and we're still stuck in the destructive wake of Isiah Thomas, but we'll be out soon enough. We'll just have to take our lumps for awhile. Thu, 31 Jan 2008 13:51:03 -0500 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12531 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12531 John Hawn Matt: I've been a Pacers fan since the team's first game in 1967, so I would be sad to see the team go. What are the ramifications of the Conseco lease? Is there an escape clause if the attendance doesn't meet a certain threshold? Can the Simons ask the city for some sort of bailout? With the current antitax climate, I'd doubt this would be a popular move by city officials, and to tell the truth, I'd probably be among those who'd say, "Bye, team. It's been good to know ya." Who (besides Oklahoma City) would want the Pacers? Thu, 31 Jan 2008 13:44:21 -0500 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12528 http://www.indy.com/posts/4318#comment_12528