Pleasing the players seems to be the best way to fill a coaching position. Just look at Miami. Of course, the Indiana Pacers are a long way from South Beach and don’t have The Big Three.
But players are still trying to persuade ownership.
“I would like to see Frank get it,” Pacers guard, Lance Stephenson, told reporters. “He helped us out this year. He made us come in more as a group. I hope Larry Bird sees what happened and we can move forward.”
Reports are saying that the Pacers players want interim coach Frank Vogel to get the “interim” tag removed from his position. Now, it’s up to Pacers President, Larry Bird, to make the final decision.
Keep in mind, it’s been more than a month since the team’s season ended. And the players are getting antsy.
“I’ll be happy if Frank gets picked,” Pacers center, Roy Hibbert, told reporters before playing in a charity softball game for the Indiana Children’s Wish Fund. “I’ve been with him since I was a rookie, so I hope he gets it. I understand that Larry’s taking his time now, but I’m pulling for him (Vogel).”
Bird has called Vogel the favorite from the beginning of the search,and praised his work stepping in as coach when Jim O’Brien was fired.
“I think Frank did an excellent job, stepping in without the experience of a head coaching job,” Bird said after the season ended. “The way he conducted himself, he brought positive energy to this team. We won more games than we lost. We did it with a young team, a team that’s trying to grow.”
Vogul went 20-18 to close the regular season and led the team to its first playoff berth since 2006.
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