Nate Bjorkgren Rumors

J. Michael Falgoust: Bjorkgren on getting any injured players back for finale or the play-in: “I’m not sure yet. We’ll have to see. I haven’t had 100 percent confirmation from any of them that they’d be back tomorrow (v Toronto) for the last regular season game or even going forward.” #PacersLakers

J. Michael Falgoust: I’ve reported a lot about how the randomness of how they’ve played defensively under Bjorkgren has confused them more than opponents. He admits, after the venerable @Tony East asked, that theyre playing less zone by design. More focus on man principles #PacersCavs

While there is ample smoke surrounding Bjorkgren, multiple league sources disputed much of what is being reported. Before the Pacers hired Bjorkgren from the Toronto Raptors, where he was an assistant, they ran it past Warren to get his input. Both were briefly in Phoenix together.

Thursday’s 133-126 win against the Atlanta Hawks kept the Pacers (31-35) in ninth place, a half-game ahead of the 10th-place Wizards (31-36). Seeds 7-10 will participate in a play-in tournament for the final two playoff seeds. “We just talked about playing basketball the right way, just playing hard and when you do that, most of the time you come out on top,” said Bjorkgren, who met with his team until 1 a.m. following Wednesday’s non-effort vs. the Sacramento Kings that resulted in disciplinary actions.

Michael Grange: Nurse was said “it hurt” to see friend/longtime assistant Nate Bjorkgren under fire in Indiana, when asked by @BlakeMurphyODC. Questioned some of the sourcing of reports. Said things related to Toronto were ‘bald-faced lies’

Eric Koreen: “It’s no fun for him and it’s no fun for me to see one of my best friends go through that,” Nurse says of the Bjorkgren situation in Indiana. He denies part of B/R report thad had to do with Raptors. “That part was 100 percent false.”