Roy Hibbert Goes Fishing For 28 Points
May 7, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers center Roy Hibbert (55) dunks against Washington Wizards forward Drew Gooden (90) in game two of the second round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Indiana defeats Washington 86-82. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Since I’ve been giving the love for this guy, I have to give him the love this evening. Maybe it was the fishing trip with Paul George yesterday. Maybe it was the talk Monday night with David West and Rasual Butler. Maybe it was having his college coach there in the stands. Maybe it was none of the above, but something did click for Roy Hibbert tonight. Now we have to see if that continues to click.
Tonight, Roy Hibbert showed why he is such a force in the post at times. He was able to get going early, which is a big key. I disagreed with Chris Webber as he was talking about the Pacers trying to give up the ball too much to Hibbert.
Hibbert DOES need those touches to see if the game is there. You can’t go a few minutes and then see if he’s good to go. I give him the ball a few times down the floor right away. Tonight, Hibbert showed he was on and engaged. Maybe the engaged part is the bigger key. When Hibbert is engaged, he’s at that All Star level.
28 points and 9 rebounds on the night for Hibbert is something I will take each and every night. But understand, we won’t always get those 28 points, I’m good with even half of those points on a consistent basis. The Pacers need to bottle up whatever was working for Hibbert tonight and feed him that come Friday night. If he’s able to take some of that scoring load off of Paul George, who can then focus on the defensive end, I think that’s a good thing. Then again, I understand Paul George is the primary guy to score.
People need to remember Roy Hibbert isn’t that primary scorer. Sure, he makes buckets of money, but he’s not paid to make all the buckets. Give me 13 or more a game, and that’s plenty of buckets. Give me the great defense in the post, and I’m even better. Give me some back to back efforts like we saw tonight, and the Pacers will be at their best.