Bob Cook

When former Indiana Pacers Reggie Miller and Dale Davis separately said, as the NBA season started, their old team wouldn’t be a championship contender unless its young players could overcome their lack of maturity and chemistry, they weren’t just being prescient. They were also masters of understatement.

When Miller and Davis, both Pacers last year, said, “lack of maturity and chemistry,” they meant, “team of head cases.” Indiana can beat Cleveland or Miami one night, and lose to Charlotte or Atlanta the next. And the Ron Artest situation is just one of many running storylines in the Indiana Pacers soap opera.

“There’s always drama in Pacerland,” Indiana guard Anthony Johnson said after a Dec. 10 victory over a tough Memphis team -- which was followed by a loss to sub-.500 Boston.

Yes, the Pacers offer plenty of gripping questions to be answered in upcoming episodes. Where will Artest go? Who will the Pacers get in return? Will Stephen Jackson sulk when his new teammates get the ball more than he does? Can he at least tie his shoes before heading on the court? Will Jermaine O’Neal be able to get his teammates’ heads together? Will Austin Croshere rip him again if he doesn’t? Does every player hate coach Rick Carlisle? Can everybody stay healthy for once? Will Jonathan “Never Mender” Bender, the alleged next Kevin Garnett, just retire already and take his busted knees and promise with him?

Just about every NBA team has some level of drama -- it can’t be helped when the same group of 15 men see each other day after day after day after day until YOU CAN’T STAND LOOKING AT THEM ANYMORE! But not every team entered the season with the expectations, and the baggage, of the Pacers.

After a 2004-05 season marred by the nearly season-long suspension of Artest and the long suspensions of Jackson and O’Neal, thanks to the infamous Nov. 19, 2004, brawl with Pistons fans (so much in our memory, we could all probably re-enact Artest’s leap off the scorer’s table and hops into the stands), the Pacers, whole again, were expected to be championship contenders. Miller had retired, but the Pacers had Artest, O’Neal and Jackson back for full seasons, and they had one of the deepest benches in the league. And there was Artest posing with team president Larry Bird on the cover of Sports Illustrated, talking about how things would be different in 2005-06.

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They were. Artest waited an extra month this season before he blew up the team. This time, he leapt in the direction of an Indianapolis Star reporter, who had not thrown a cup of beer at him, to issue his demand he be traded. Artest said he didn’t like Carlisle and his slo-mo offense, especially because he wasn’t getting enough offensive touches. But Artest mostly said it’s not you, Pacers, it’s me. “I think I cause a lot of problems here,” Artest said.

Wow. He has the same gift of understatement as Miller and Davis.