For everything Pacers coach Frank Vogel has done for Roy Hibbert, this was not how Hibbert should have slammed the door shut on his time in Indy.
He was introduced as the Los Angeles Lakers center last Wednesday, saying he was ready for a fresh start, and then in a Q & A published with Turner Sports’ David Aldridge on Monday, Hibbert took a subtle and unnecessary jab at Vogel.
In recalling his conversation with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak and head coach Bryon Scott about what he wanted, Hibbert said the following:
I told them, I want to be like that (Andrew) Bogut-type guy, the defensive guy, because we have a lot of guys who can score already on this team. I’m at the point where I want to win a championship, and getting to play with Kobe, it’s an amazing opportunity for me. I wanted to play with a shooting guard or a small forward like Paul (George), who was athletic and can take over games offensively. And I wanted to play for a coach who actually played in the league if I had my own choice. Not to say that Frank (Vogel) wasn’t great. I had some real good times with Frank and we played well. But I told my agent that I possibly wanted to play for a coach that played in the league.
A coach who “actually played in the league.”
Ouch.
[Jordan Hill shares what Hibbert is in store for with Kobe]
Coach Frank Vogel was just what Hibbert needed after Jim O’Brien, and he has always his corner.
You see, when Vogel took over on an interim basis at the end of January, 2011, the locker room rejoiced. Especially Hibbert. They were at ease, no longer intimidated or disrespected by former coach Jim O’Brien.
It wasn’t just Hibbert. David Harrison said he smoked marijuana before and after practices to deal with him. O’Brien being fired was Paul George’s favorite memory as a rookie.
Vogel was a breath of fresh air, a hard worker with a brilliant basketball mind who cared deeply for his guys. He was determined to not only build a winning culture, but also a family-friendly environment.
Aldridge, the great reporter that he is, followed up on Hibbert noting his preference.
“Just playing for BShaw (Brian Shaw, the Pacers’ former associate head coach under Vogel), he went through the things that a player has gone through,” Hibbert continued. “He had a lot of real good insight to help myself, my game, with other guys on the court. Because he went through those things. And when you had two sets of four games in five nights, he was real with us. He would say, if I’m tired, you’re tired. It’s not a huge thing, but I’m really lucky to be in this position.”
(Full disclosure: Almost three weeks ago, VigilantSports.com put in a request for an interview to look back at his in Indy and ahead to L.A.)
One of Shaw’s greatest talents is his ability to understand and relate with players. Guys are loyal to him. When Shaw was fired mid-season in Denver, his Pacers guys had his back, of course.
Vogel has those traits as well.
It was Vogel, as the head coach, who rebounded for Hibbert on an off day two seasons ago when he couldn’t get out of a rut.
It was Vogel who had the video guys put together multiple lengthy edits on how Hibbert could improve his rebounding and help him return to old form.
It was Vogel who stuck up for his starting center — and continued to start him — when no one else had anything positive to say about his play during the 2014 NBA Playoffs.
And, it was Vogel who helped Hibbert become the standard for the verticality rule in the NBA. When I asked coach in April, 2014, how they had done it, Vogel was quick to clarify “What he’s accomplished.” That’s who he is, and why I’m sure he doesn’t appreciate this latest comment.
Vogel is optimistic by nature, choosing the positive over the league, and loyal to his guys.
Hibbert’s season averages, meantime, dipped down this past season, to just above his rookie levels: 10.6 points, 7.1 rebounds per game. Working last summer with Kareem Abdul-Jabaar, a six-time NBA Champion and league MVP, didn’t seem to do much good.
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Vogel has supported Hibbert going all the way back to his assistant coaching role with the team (2007-11).
It’s no secret that a change in scenery would be best for both parties. Hibbert, a two-time NBA All-Star, liked the Lakers, the potential to work with some Laker greats, and the Pacers freed up money off their books while also weeks later trading the 2019 second-round pick received for Rakeem Christmas.
More than anything, it was an odd comment from the 28-year-old. Vogel was surrounded by former players on his staff, first Brian Shaw and then Nate McMillan and Popeye Jones. That was a priority for both Vogel and President Larry Bird. Over the last two seasons, much of Hibbert’s individual work was done with Jones, their big man coach.
Obviously a former NBA player would have a better understanding on the workload and the hits a player takes throughout a trying 82-game season. Again, that’s why B-Shaw was beloved in the locker room.
“He helped (Roy) out a lot as far as dealing with players and being able to adjust to different things because of the NBA season that only players understand,” one former Pacers player wrote to me in a text.
What that player may be hinting at is player usage and wear and tear during the season. Like in 2014, when David West and Paul George suggested to coach for some of the core group to get some rest. We’ve seen Spurs coach Gregg Popovich take heat for sitting guys when he feels right. Communication has to go both ways.
In all, it just doesn’t feel right that Hibbert is leaving the Pacers, leaving Indianapolis on a sour note. He did so much for the community, with Area 55, his flashmob, the annual celebrity softball game, and more. But he closed up quite a bit, after he inked a new contract, $58 million over four years, in 2012 and lost his appeal both on the court and in interactions with the public, especially over the final 18 months. He was an elite center in the league — and he hopes to get back to that.
I appreciate Hibbert’s honesty and willingness to reflect on his days with the Pacers to somebody in the media. That needed to be done.
This offseason rejection, though, isn’t a good look because Vogel believed in him perhaps more than anybody.