Danny Granger feeling good, calls return to Indy ‘strange’

Danny Granger wasn’t sure what Wednesday was going to be like. He thought it over, even talked with teammate Dwyane Wade and others.

He was about to return to Indianapolis and play at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for the first time since being traded away last February (in a deal that brought Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen over from Philadelphia).

Being drafted by the Pacers in 2005 (17th), Indy was all Granger had known in his adult life. Lots changed for him in that time, both personally and professionally, and he has matured a great deal. Especially since having twins two years ago.

Danny Granger had some great years in Indy, and was the key guy during a down time for the franchise.

Staying at The Alexander Hotel, not more than two blocks from the Fieldhouse, how could he not consider what Wednesday night would be like?

With a 3:00 p.m. tip-off on New Year’s Eve, the Miami Heat did not shootaround — a time where he could ordinarily gather his thoughts and be sentimental ahead of the game.

After arriving by bus more than two hours before the game, Granger stepped off, said hello to Brian, the longtime security guard that runs the underground garage, and then started the walk to the locker room.

“When I came into the arena, it just felt like I was coming to practice,” Granger said. “That’s all I’ve known for 10 years.”

He didn’t make it far before stopping again, this time to say hello to another behind-the-scenes staffer.

“I gave the usher a hug, asked her where to go,” he said. “She thought I was playing. I was like, ‘I really don’t know where to go.'”

You see, Granger had never been in the visitor’s locker room on the south end of the Fieldhouse. No reason to. And last season, after being traded and then bought out by the 76ers, the Los Angeles Clippers, who he finished the year with, had already made their annual visit.

This was the first time.

Granger, known for being a big trash talker, exchanged pre-game texts with some of his former teammates, like Paul George, Roy Hibbert, and David West.

Especially David West.

“I told D-West I’m going to post him up,” Granger joked.

Granger had planned to fly his wife, Dionna, and their two-year-old twins (Jaxon and Jade) to Indy and have them stay with the Hibbert’s. Dionna remains close with Roy’s wife, Valerie. (Granger still has his Indy home and condo, but both are leased out.) Because it was New Year’s Eve and the team was flying home immediately after the game, his family stayed in Miami.

Granger still frequently speaks with George. The two have the same agent, Aaron Mintz, spend their offseasons in Los Angeles, and it was Granger who mentored a young George after he entered the league barely 21-years-old. Granger also encouraged team president Larry Bird to draft the Palmdale, Calif. native.

To this day, George still refers to Granger as “big brother.”

“That’s my guy,” Granger said, and lit up when talking about the face of the Pacers. “I’ve talked to him throughout his recovery process. … It’s a lifelong friendship that we’ve always had. We were friends before he even got drafted. That’s just how we’ll always be.”

Coming back was exciting for Granger, and he says he is not bitter that the franchise traded him. He gets it.

“I’m not bitter about it at all,” he said. “I understand, more than anything, the business of basketball,” he said candidly. “… We’re out to perform, we’re out here to entertain and I got hurt. And it happens. If I can’t perform at the level that I was performing at, management has got to make changes, regardless if they wanted to or not.”

Free Agency

The Granger’s had a busy 2014, living in three different cities in eight months. After a short stay with the Clippers in Los Angeles, where he has a home, Granger was a free agent this past summer. He considered staying with the Clippers, or moving on to Dallas, Miami, and even coming back to Indiana.

Granger visited town over the summer and described the talks as “very far” along. However, with the Pacers near the luxury tax line, it was not as simple as Danny deciding where he wanted to play.

“A lot of hurdles had to happen for it to happen, like an exception, then a trade,” he told me. “Sign with this team then trade me to this team. I think they could have worked it out but then they were still in limbo with Lance [Stephenson]. It was all in the middle of that. And then I had to make a decision before so it ended up being Miami.”

Granger suited up for just 29 games last year, his final season with the Pacers. He missed the first 25 games of the season with the calf strain and was never right. Trainers told him last season that he could play, but it was going to be at least another year for Granger to be himself again.

Feeling Great

One quick glance at Danny you noticed something right away: He looked much thinner.

He shed 12 pounds and recently weighed in at 218 pounds. He still feels strong, but lighter, which helps counteract his age — and his knees thank him.

“Man, I feel really good now,” Granger said. “I’m making moves, and cutting, I’m doing my step-backs and feel really good. … [Tonight was] definitely a step forward for me.”

Granger in his third NBA uniform.

It’s the best he’s felt since 2010, and Granger credits the weight loss and extensive rehab.

“When I say extensively, I mean extensively,” he said. “Never take a day off. I have to do something with it, whether it’s balance, whether it’s my hips, whether it’s my rotations, we don’t take a day off. And it’s been responding well and it hasn’t given me any problems.”

“He’s been great with his recovery everyday,” added Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. “It’s been great to see, a residual for all the work he’s put in. He’s a pro’s pro.”

Spoelstra noted that Granger was ahead of schedule; the original plan was for him to start incorporating Granger after the New Year.

After battling a illness that kept him bedside for a few days, Granger is now in rhythm and hitting his stride. Over the last three games, he’s averaged 17.6 points. He’s played 18-plus minutes in six straight games.

Granger said he isn’t doing special treatment, or anything that he didn’t do with the Pacers’ ace medical staff. He’s just been able to take his time.

First it was the calf injury, and that led to other things. And those items are likely to continue, in some form, the rest of his career. But he doesn’t regret coming back when he did last season. In fact, he said he needed to keep moving his knee and maintaining it or else it would have locked up.

“I’m going to play or I’m going to retire,” he said. “You can’t just shut me down coming back from the injury that I had.”

Retirement did creep into his mind over the last year. A lot of doubt, too, and he wondered if he’d ever play like he wanted to.

“With my situation, I just needed my body to come around and it finally came around, thank goodness,” he continued.

“I learned it takes a long, long time for you to develop your muscle balances. (The Pacers) didn’t even have enough time with me to get me to that point, to tell you the truth, before I got traded. When I was with them, for them to get me back to this point, they would have needed another year with me — it doesn’t matter where I went. Whether I was with the Clippers, or the Heat, I don’t think I would have got to this point until I was here at this time in my career.”

The warm Miami sun doesn’t hurt, either.

“The sun down there gets into your joints and you just feel better down in Miami because it’s hot and humid and you feel better down there,” Granger said.

The 31-year-old signed a two-year deal with Miami (for $4.2 million), and many thought it would perhaps be his last contract. But that’s not his plan.

“I’m 31, going on 32, and with dropping my weight and I really rehabbed that knee to really, really, really get it strong again, I think I can play longer honestly,” he shared. “Guys nowadays are playing til 35, 36, or 37, so I wouldn’t want it to be my last contract. I still think I got something left.”

Game Time

More than nine minutes into the game, he finally headed to the scorer’s table to check in. Alonzo Mourning’s No. 33 jersey was retired in 2009 so Granger had to pick another number. He settled on 22, simply because he has twins, and they were two years old.

Granger checks in (via @mg_indy on Instagram).

“Zo wouldn’t let me have 33,” Granger said with a grin. “It wasn’t even a discussion.”

Granger missed his first shot — a rushed 3-pointer to end the opening frame. Shortly in the second quarter, he got the ball on the right arc and drained a triple.

He played a little more than 25 minutes off the bench and finished with 14 points (on 6-of-9 shooting), three rebounds and a steal. We even saw his staple step-back jumper.

“I’m happy to see him finally getting healthy, having confidence in his knee, and getting in the rotation,” Pacers coach Frank Vogel said pregame. “I know he wants to resume his career and have a strong couple of years to finish up and I’m happy to see him doing well.”

Granger had numerous exchanges with Chris Copeland, who’s Pacers locker was just a few away.

See Also: Copeland receives second NBA technical foul, loses $2K to close out 2014

“Yeah, that’s my guy,” Copeland said of Granger. “I got nothing but love for Danny. Obviously we’re going to talk back and forth but I’m happy for him. I’ve seen he’s had success in the last few games and whatnot, and even today on me. That’s my guy. I’m happy for him and hopefully he keeps doing well.”

When Granger ripped off his warm-ups and checked in, he received a nice applause. (To much surprise, the organization elected not to have a special tribute video. He was on the cover of the game program handed out.) However, the cheers faded as the game went on.

“I expect that being the opponent,” said Granger. “I’m sure everybody remembers what I did here but I know how everybody feels about the Miami Heat in Indianapolis. That’s how it is. That’s not big deal. I was just happy to get it out of the way so I could just play.

“I have a lot of love for Indiana fans. The people that have worked here and the people I’ve worked with. I’m not talking about my teammates. I’ve seen so many season ticket holders over the years. I’ve seen one kid grow from being eight to 19 and he’s been sitting in the same seat all those years.”

George Hill: “I talked to him after the game, just told him we love him, we miss him, and wish he was still here. Hopefully he stays healthy and has a great year.”

The feeling is mutual.

Still, though …”It was strange,” Granger said, relaxed at his corner locker. “It was really, really strange to be on the other side of it.”

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