I really have not written much about the Indiana Pacers because, frankly, I don’t go to the games at Bankers Life. I watch them on television and I really have no inside connections to them other then being frustrated when they don’t play well. Since I have blood pressure problems, it’s easier for me to flip the channel than it would be to try and stick my head under my leg or pull my shirt over my head at the arena until the game is over. When my dad was alive and in good health, he and I would occasionally make it down to Market Square for a game. My father, however, suffered from the same dilemma I now go through. If the Pacers lost or they just played sloppy ball, he would become very upset and claim that he was a jinx or worse, that the Pacers were playing badly because they knew that he was in the home crowd and that they were purposely spiting him. After the game, as we would be knocking a few sliders down at the Chateau Leblanc to ease our pain, he would confess his frustration to me and swear never to attend another Pacers game. If the Pacers won, we would still hit the WC for a few sliders in celebration of the victory. On such occasions we would dissect the win and speculate on the possibility that the Pacers finally had the team that just might possibly be able to take the NBA championship. Those were the days!
Well folks, we now have that team that my father and I dreamed about while we wolfed down our onion burgers. The current Pacers team is the best team that has worn the blue and gold since the merger. That includes the Reggie Miller led teams of the 90’s. The 2012-13 Pacers are at the dawn of what may be the “Golden Age” of the Pacers. So what happened in the championship? Why did the guys look like world beaters on one night and then play like clueless chumps the next? It’s as simple as this. THE PACERS ARE OUT TO GET ME!!!! It’s all personal. They are punishing me for not being a loyal and true blue fan and for not supporting them through thick and thin. Before the start of game seven in the locker room at American Airlines Arena, the Pacers conducted a super secret meeting. Head Coach Frank Vogel made the following announcement” We have strong reason to believe that Steve Nicewanger will be watching the game tonight back in Indianapolis. We got him thinking that we just might be able to go all the way this year. This was our plan. Now we can really pull the rug out from under him. This is what the season has been about. So let’s go finish him off!”
Roy Hibbert said “We can really fix the #*@+$*% ?>^# for good tonight, and I don’t care if I do get fined. He’s got it coming!”
So the result was a 99-76 blowout for the Miami Heat in game seven and the Pacers season ends.
So the best Pacer team that has ever hit the NBA wood goes back to Indy to pause, reflect, and prepare for the 2013-14 season. If only they could forget about this deep-seated vendetta they have against me personally, they could concentrate on winning a championship banner to hang in Bankers Life. Well, I’ll tell you now. I am never going to watch another Pacer game again for the rest of my life……yeah right!
snicewanger@yahoo.com