The Sacramento Kings picked 23-year old shooting guard Orlando Johnson out of UC-Santa Barbara with the 36th overall pick (2nd round) of the 2012 NBA Draft. They then traded him to the Pacers for a wad of cold, hard cash. Johnson is 6′5″, 205 pounds. Johnson played in 31 games at UC-Santa Barbara last year and he averaged 34.4 minutes, 19.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Johnson played in 124 games in his four years in college and he averaged 31.3 minutes, 17.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. Johnson will likely give the Pacers some offense off the bench as a rookie.

The Indiana Pacers picked 23-year old center Miles Plumlee out of Duke with the 26th overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft. Plumlee stands 6′10″, 245 pounds and he plays a big man’s game. He played in 34 games for Duke last year and he averaged 20.5 minutes, 6.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. Plumlee played in 135 games in his three years at Duke and he averaged 15.8 minutes, 4.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. He projects as a backup center in the NBA.

If the playoff series against the Miami Heat showed anything about the Pacers, it was that they had a lack of depth up front. The Pacers own the #26 overall pick in the NBA Draft at the end of this month and I see them going after the best big man available. With that in mind, I have the Pacers taking power forward Kevin Jones out of West Virginia with their first round pick in my mock draft, which can be found on bloglockers.com. This would be a rock solid pick for the Pacers as Jones would bring toughness to the frontcourt in 2012-13 and beyond.

The Orlando Magic are banged up heading into the first round of the playoffs as they are going to be without Dwight Howard. The Pacers have been hot as they appear to be jelling at the right time. Here is a look at this series:

POINT GUARD: 30-year old Jameer Nelson has been playing his best basketball late in the season and the Magic hopes he keeps up the good work in the playoffs. Nelson played in 57 games (all starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 29.9 minutes, 11.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game. He has played in 39 games in the playoffs so far in his NBA career and he is averaging 32.0 minutes, 14.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.

25-year old George Hill has taken over as the Pacers’ starting point guard. He played in 50 games (9 starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 25.5 minutes, 9.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Hill has played in 20 games in the playoffs in his NBA career so far and he is averaging 30.5 minutes, 11.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game.

EDGE: EVEN

SHOOTING GUARD: 31-year old Jason Richardson turned in a very disappointing year for the Magic, but he will try to make up for it in the playoffs. Richardson played in 54 games (all starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 29.5 minutes, 11.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steal per game. He has played in 32 games in the playoffs so far in his NBA career and he is averaging 34.8 minutes, 18.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.1 blocked shots per game. Richardson tends to step up in the playoffs and the Magic need him to do so again in this series.

21-year old Paul George was the starting shooting guard this year and he excelled. He played in 66 games (all starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 29.7 minutes, 12.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He has only played in 5 games in his playoff career and he is averaging 26.6 minutes, 6.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.4 steals and 2.0 blocked shots per game. George has a huge size advantage over anyone the Magic can use at shooting guard, and the Pacers would be smart to take advantage of that in this series.

EDGE: EVEN

SMALL FORWARD: 33-year old small forward Hedo Turkoglu is back from his facial fracture and he will get his starting job back. He played in 53 games (all starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 31.2 minutes, 10.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. Turkoglu has played in 88 playoff games so far in his NBA career and he is averaging 31.0 minutes, 11.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game.

29-year old Danny Granger is the Pacers’ best offensive player when he’s hot. He played in 62 games (all starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 33.3 minutes, 18.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Granger has played in 11 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is averaging 31.4 minutes, 14.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. The Pacers are going to need Granger to step up in the playoffs.

EDGE: PACERS

POWER FORWARD: 23-year old Ryan Anderson had an outstanding season for the Magic. He played in 61 games (all starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 32.2 minutes, 16.1 points, 7.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Anderson has played in 15 games in the playoffs in his NBA career so far and he is averaging 15.7 minutes, 3.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. The Magic need Anderson to step up if the Magic are going to have any chance at pulling an upset in this series.

31-year old David West has been rock solid for the Pacers this year. He played in 66 games (all starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 29.2 minutes, 12.8 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. West has now played in 24 playoff games in his NBA career and he is averaging 32.3 minutes, 16.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.2 blocked shots per game.

EDGE: EVEN

CENTER: 26-year old Glen “Big Baby” Davis has played great so far in April and the Magic need him to keep up the good work. Davis played in 61 games (13 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 23.4 minutes, 9.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. Davis has played in 64 games in the playoffs in his NBA career so far and he is averaging 20.6 minutes, 7.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.

25-year old Roy Hibbert has really picked up his game this year and the Pacers need that to continue in the playoffs. Hibbert played in 65 games (all starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 29.8 minutes, 12.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 2.0 blocked shots. Hibbert has played in 5 games for the Pacers in the playoffs so far in his career and he is averaging 26.4 minutes, 10.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 1.8 blocked shots per game.

EDGE: PACERS

BENCH: The Magic are going to likely push the starters to play a lot of minutes in this series, as they don’t have players with a lot of experience on the bench. 27-year old guard J.J. Redick will get a lot of P.T. in this series. He played in 65 games (22 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 27.2 minutes, 11.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. Redick has played in 39 games so far in the playoffs in his NBA career and he is averaging 18.9 minutes, 6.3 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. 32-year old SF Quentin Richardson could get some solid P.T. in this series too. Q-Rich played in 48 games (3 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 18.0 minutes, 4.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. He has played in 26 games in the playoffs in his NBA career and he is averaging 31.2 minutes, 9.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game. 21-year old center Daniel Orton could get some P.T. in this series if Glen Davis is having problems with Roy Hibbert. Orton played in 16 games (2 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 11.7 minutes, 2.8 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. 29-year old point guard Chris Duhon played in 63 games (9 starts) for the Magic this year and he averaged 19.5 minutes, 3.8 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Duhon has played in 22 games in the playoffs so far in his NBA career and he is averaging 21.2 minutes, 4.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. 24-year old power forward Earl Clark could get some minutes in this series. Clark played in 45 games (1 start) for the Magic this year and he averaged 12.4 minutes, 2.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. He played in 4 games so far in the playoffs in his career and he is averaging 4.8 minutes, 1.5 points, 1.5 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. 26-year old SG Von Wafer is buried on the bench, but he is a solid offensive player. He played in 33 games (1 start) for the Magic this year and he averaged 14.2 minutes, 5.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. Wafer has played in 16 games so far in the playoffs in his career and he is averaging 11.6 minutes, 6.6 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.

The Pacers have some quality players on their bench. 24-year old point guard Darren Collison has been demoted to the bench. Hopefully he doesn’t sulk about it. Collison played in 60 games (56 starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 31.3 minutes, 10.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game. He has played in 5 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is averaging 29.2 minutes, 9.4 points, 2.6 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.0 steal per game. 26-year old PF/C Tyler Hansbrough will be the first big man off the bench. He played in 66 games (0 starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 21.8 minutes, 9.3 points, 4.4 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. He has played in 5 games in his playoff career so far and he is averaging 32.8 minutes, 11.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.2 steals per game. 29-year old SG/SF Leandro Barbosa has been solid off the bench as he comes off of it shooting the ball. Barbosa played in 22 games (0 starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 19.8 minutes, 8.9 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. Barbosa has played in 64 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is averaging 23.3 minutes, 10.2 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. 29-year old PF/C Louis Amundson will also likely get to throw his body around a little bit in this series. He played in 60 games (0 starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 12.6 minutes, 3.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. Amundson has now played in 18 games in his playoff career and he is averaging 11.3 minutes, 2.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game. 31-year old SG/SF Dahntay Jones brings defense and toughness to the court when he’s on it. Jones played in 65 games (3 starts) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 16.2 minutes, 5.3 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. He has played in 26 games so far in his career in the playoffs and he is averaging 17.2 minutes, 6.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. 25-year old #3 point guard A.J. Price won’t likely get much P.T. in this series. He played in 44 games (1 start) for the Pacers this year and he averaged 12.9 minutes, 3.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. Price has played in 5 playoff games in his career so far and he is averaging 16.0 minutes, 8.4 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

EDGE: HUGE FOR PACERS

COACHING: Stan Van Gundy has been under fire all season long to his not getting along with Dwight Howard. Here is his big chance to show what he can do without him. Van Gundy led the Magic to a 37-29 (56.1%) record during the regular season. He is 47-35 (57.3%) during the playoffs in his career in the NBA.

Frank Vogel coached up the Pacers this year as he got them to finish with an impressive 42-24 record (63.6%). Vogel was only 1-4 in his first taste of the playoffs last year.

EDGE: EVEN

PREDICTION: PACERS IN FIVE GAMES

The Indiana Pacers acquired 25-year old SG/PG George Hill from the San Antonio Spurs for the draft rights to SF Kawhi Leonard (1st round, #15 overall), PF Davis Bertans (2nd round, #42 overall) and 27-year old power forward Erazem Lorbek (2nd round pick in 2005, #46 overall). Hill played in 76 games (5 starts) for the Spurs last year and he averaged 28.3 minutes, 11.6 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He has now played in 231 games (55 starts) in his first three years in the NBA and he is averaging 24.6 minutes, 9.9 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. I’m thinking that the Pacers made this deal with the idea of starting Hill at shooting guard. If that is the case, I really like this deal for both teams.

The Indiana Pacers have the #15 and #42 overall picks in the 2011 NBA Draft this Thursday. The Pacers need to add a tough guy under the basket. PF Kenneth Faried might be available when the Pacers’ first pick comes up. I think they will really consider making him the pick. I also think the Pacers will consider shooting guards like Malcolm Lee, Travis Leslie, Josh Selby and Marshon Brooks. If the Pacers take a shooting guard in the first round, then they will take the toughest big man left on the board at #42.

The Pacers selected 23-year old forward Ryan Reid with the 56th overall pick in the NBA Draft and then they traded him to the Oklahoma City Thunder for 24-year old center Magnum Rolle who was picked 51st overall. Rolle played in 34 games at Louisiana Tech last season and he averaged 13.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 2.1 blocked shots per game. Rolle played in 93 games in college and he averaged 10.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 0.7 assists and 1.7 blocked shots per game. I really like this trade for the Pacers as Rolle has a decent upside.

UPDATE: (10/26/2010) - The Pacers have released Magnum Rolle. They wanted to keep him but they didn’t have enough rosters spots to keep everyone.

The Indiana Pacers have selected 19-year old shooting guard Lance Stephenson with the 40th overall pick of the NBA Draft. Stephenson played in 34 games (32 starts) for Cincinnati last season and he averaged 12.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. The Pacers are gambling on Stephenson’s outstanding athletic ability as he really excels in the open court. He has the potential to be one of the best players picked in the second round based on talent alone.

The Pacers have picked 20-year old small forward Paul George with the 10th overall pick of the NBA Draft. George played in 29 games (28 starts) for Fresno State last season and he averaged 16.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.2 steals per game. He finished up at Fresno having played in 63 games (53 starts) in which he averaged 15.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.0 steals per game. Picking George likely bumps Danny Granger to shooting guard full time. I like this pick as George should give the Pacers a nice offensive boost starting this season.

The Pacers are likely going to be one of the most active teams in tomorrow night’s NBA Draft. The Pacers hold the #10, #40 and #57 picks in the NBA Draft and they are looking to make a deal. The Pacers are looking for a legit point guard and they are likely to offer the #10 overall pick and maybe more to get one. Darren Collison and Jonny Flynn are rumored names of guys they are after. Troy Murphy, Brandon Rush and Mike Dunleavy will also be likely available for trade tomorrow. Besides a point guard the Pacers should be after offensive players who can give Danny Granger some support.