Demon Deacons

Basketball News highlights the reporting, analysis and podcasts that defined a year of basketball in 2022.

Best of Basketball News: Spotlighting our top content from 2022

Nekias Duncan thoroughly breaks down all five teams in the Central Division ahead of the 2022-23 season.

2022-23 NBA Season Preview: Central Division

Alex Kennedy goes 1-on-1 with Tyrese Haliburton, who opens up about getting traded, the Pacers' future, his offseason training, etc.

Tyrese Haliburton won’t let trade 'resentment' define new Pacers era

Former NBA scout and BasketballNews.com scouting advisor, Doc Martin, recently attended Overtime Elite&rsquo;s opening weekend at their brand new arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
Although Martin took notes on a number of the team&rsquo;s prospects, he was asked to focus on Jean Montero, who is currently ranked No. 16 on BasketballNews.com's <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 NBA Draft Big Board</a>.
Here is Martin's scouting report on Montero:
Jean Montero | Overtime Elite
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<td style="width: 41.0373%; height: 22px;">Height: 6-2</td>
<td style="width: 58.0126%; height: 22px;">Position: Guard</td>
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<td style="width: 41.0373%; height: 22px;">Weight: 172</td>
<td style="width: 58.0126%; height: 22px;">Draft Day Age: 19.1</td>
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<td style="width: 41.0373%; height: 22px;">Wingspan: 6-4</td>
<td style="width: 58.0126%; height: 22px;">Nationality: Dominican Republic</td>
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Roles: Three-Level Scorer, Crafty Finisher, Facilitator, Floor General, Primary Ball-Handler
Strengths: Jean Montero is the type of guard that can score, but doesn't always look to score. He has a presence and command on the floor, and plays at a really good pace. He handles the ball well enough to where he never seems to be in a rush with one or multiple defenders around him. Montero has the type of skill where he can see the action before it happens. He plays downhill in pick-and-roll actions and routinely makes the simple play, dropping pocket passes, throwing lobs to the rim for rolling bigs or firing skip passes to the wings lifting out of the corners. What I love most about Montero &mdash; which is similar to college and NFL quarterbacks &mdash; is that he's able to throw to teammates who are open, getting them easy buckets. He can finish with either hand, whether it&rsquo;s below or above the rim in transition. He plays unselfishly and advances the ball, and has solid shooting mechanics with NBA three-point range (and a few feet beyond).
Concerns: I would like to see Montero be a bit more disciplined defensively. There were several instances where guards were getting downhill just a bit too easily, mostly in the pick-and-roll actions.
Questions
<ul>
<li>Does he have the physical gear to defend elite NBA point guards?&nbsp;</li>
<li>There was no one at this event that could challenge him this weekend. How will he respond against equal or better competition?</li>
</ul>
Bottom Line: After watching Montero play this weekend, it's clear that he's Overtime Elite&rsquo;s best pro prospect for the 2022 NBA Draft. He plays the right way and gets all of his teammates involved. He brings a lot of intangibles to the table that would make any coach feel comfortable with him on the floor. It would be hard to get it wrong by selecting this young man.&nbsp;

After attending Overtime Elite's opening weekend in Atlanta, Doc Martin shares his takeaways from watching Jean Montero.

2022 NBA Draft: Jean Montero scouting report

Since <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nate-bjorkgrens-future-with-pacers-up-in-the-air-" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Adrian Wojnarowski's report of Nate Bjorkgren's uncertain future with the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday</a>, there has been a lot of noise regarding Bjorkgren's lack of leadership and communication skills, which many have cited as a reason for Indiana's underwhelming year.
<a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2942713-inside-the-turbulent-tenure-of-indiana-pacers-coach-nate-bjorkgren" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report</a> reported today that, "Bjorkgren's communication style has been categorized as aggressive and abrasive with players and members of the Pacers staff, from his front-of-the-bench assistants down to trainers and equipment personnel. That behavior was cited as the cause for one assistant coach's resignation."
Fischer went on to include quotes from NBA executives and personnel who worked and interacted with Bjorkgren previously and this is what they had to say:
"He's just very different," said one league executive who has worked previously with Bjorkgren. "He's not a d--k; he's just completely out of his element as a leader.
"He didn't come in relationship-building in an easy way from day one," said one Pacers voice.
"Typically younger coaches bring a more positive, spirited, encouraging behavior, not an antagonistic approach," said an assistant general manager.
Bjorkgren clearly hasn't built up the best reputation as a head coach, so why did the Pacers give him the job in the first place? Fischer of Bleacher Report <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2942713-inside-the-turbulent-tenure-of-indiana-pacers-coach-nate-bjorkgren" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote that,</a>&nbsp;"Bjorkgren won over Indiana brass with an overwhelmingly positive energy during the interview process. Tune into any Bjorkgren press conference, and you'll glimpse the prowess he exhibits when speaking tactically about basketball."
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Also Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan is very close friends with Bjorkgren and many believe Buchanan's relationship with Bjorkgren helped him get the job. Fischer went on to report that Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse was heavily consulted throughout the interview process, as Bjorkgren was served as an assistant under him last season, but Indiana never consulted Phoenix executives (where Bjorkgren was an assistant from 2015-17).
This story gets even more interesting, though. According <a href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2942713-inside-the-turbulent-tenure-of-indiana-pacers-coach-nate-bjorkgren" target="_blank" rel="noopener">to Fischer</a>, T.J. Warren, who played under Bjorkgren during his time in Phoenix, was never consulted about the move and was so unhappy about the hire that he reportedly requested a trade upon learning of Bjorkgren getting the job. Fischer reports that Warren has no interest in playing for Bjorkgren and that he may have even elected to have season-ending knee surgery to avoid playing for Bjorkgren this year
Since this report came out, there has been major pushback from the Pacers. Warren took to Twitter to claim these narratives are completely false:
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Don&rsquo;t use me to push false narratives
&mdash; TJ Warren (@TonyWarrenJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/TonyWarrenJr/status/1390386841862483970?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 6, 2021</a></blockquote>

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There&rsquo;s a lot of nonsense on this app today...
&mdash; TJ Warren (@TonyWarrenJr) <a href="https://twitter.com/TonyWarrenJr/status/1390378710604435459?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 6, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Also, J. Michael of the IndyStar said that the front office did ask Warren about Bjorkgren before hiring him.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Meant to say this about TJ Warren &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pacers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Pacers</a> since I've been asked about it a lot today for some reason😎: -- Front office did ask about Bjorkgren before hiring him --Pritchard asked TJ to take a bigger leadership role before the season. He agreed Draw your own conclusions🤷🏽&zwj;♂️
&mdash; J. Michael (@ThisIsJMichael) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThisIsJMichael/status/1390509237256826882?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2021</a></blockquote>

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<a href="https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nba/pacers/2021/05/06/pacers-what-we-know-pacers-nate-bjorkgren-and-t-j-warren/4976885001/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to the IndyStar</a>, a source with knowledge of the situation said that Warren never requested a trade and a second source confirmed this.
Based on all these recent reports, it seems unlikely that Bjorkgren will return as the Pacers' head coach next season, but winning does cure all, so it'll be interesting to see how the Pacers close out the season, as they are currently fighting for positioning in the NBA's play-in. It's clear, though, that things aren't right on the Indiana bench, as just recently Pacers assistant coach Greg Foster got into an altercation with Goga Bitadze, which has since then resulted in a suspension for Foster and a fine for Bitadze.
Bjorkgren <a href="https://www.yardbarker.com/nba/articles/indiana_pacers_nate_bjorkgren_speaks_on_reported_turmoil/s1_16628_34831019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">took blame</a> for the lack of communication on the sideline and said, "It's been a tough year. There's a lot of challenges out there being a coach and being a head coach in this league. I don't make excuses. I'm a young coach and I'm learning and I'm growing and I'm trying to be better."
With just about a week and a half left in the regular season, Indiana sits at ninth place in the Eastern Conference Standings with a 31-35 record.

Pacers forward T.J. Warren has rebutted reports that suggest he requested a trade after learning that Nate Bjorkgren was hired.

Blake