INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana Pacers bizarre season came to a familiar end Friday night. Another embarrassing loss at Miami. Now Larry Bird must spend the off-season trying to figure out what went wrong and what must be fixed to finally beat the Heat in the playoffs. "You just have to go into the off-season with the mindset that were going to reload. We have a core, a system, a culture thats going to give us a chance every year," coach Frank Vogel said after Fridays 25-point, season-ending loss. "Weve got to make whatever adjustments we have to make to come back and be here again next year." There are plenty of questions heading into what could be a turbulent off-season. Will Vogel be back after leading the Pacers to 42, 49 and 56 wins in his first three full seasons as coach, capturing back-to-back Central Division titles, reaching the last two conference finals and earning the No. 1 seed for only the third time in franchise history? Will the Pacers re-sign free agent Lance Stephenson, their 23-year-old energizer, whose erratic behaviour became a major distraction in the Eastern Conference finals? Could Hibbert be on the trading block after struggling through Indianas confounding second-half swoon and nearly disappearing, at times, during the playoffs? Might Bird make other moves to cope with the NBA trend of spreading the floor, add scorers or rebuild the bench yet again? Or do the Pacers simply need more time to mature? While those answers might not come for months, one thing is clear: They must find a way to get past Miami after three straight playoff series losses, the last two in the Eastern Conference finals. "Obviously, theyre more prepared, theyre more seasoned for this moment," David West said. "Theyve been able to embrace these moments to get to a level that we, for some reason, cant compete." Bird spent last summer revamping the bench, and Indiana responded with a 33-7 start — the best in the NBA. But after signing Andrew Bynum in February and trading Danny Granger for Evan Turner at the trade deadline, the Pacers went into a confounding second-half swoon in which they looked disengaged and disinterested. Two-time All-Star Paul George acknowledged Friday that the Pacers seemed to hit a wall, thinking they could turn it on whenever they needed it. Somehow, they still managed to finish with the best record in the East, rallied to win the final two games against eighth-seeded Atlanta after twice giving away home-court advantage and rallied again against a young Washington team after giving away home-court advantage in Game 1. When they did it again by failing to close out the Heat at home in Game 2, Miami responded by winning all three of its home games decisively to clinch the series. "You know at times it feels like were there, and then theres games where it still feels like were not at that point yet," George said when asked if he thought the Pacers had closed the gap on Miami. "Coach says it, I mean, in order for us to beat this team, weve got to play like champions. More times than not, we didnt do so." Most of the problems were self-inflicted. Indiana struggled with infighting, prolonged slumps, unseemly rumours and constant criticism. Hibbert epitomized much of it. In late March, he complained about "selfish dudes" in the locker room, a barb directed at Stephenson, later apologized and was so bad, at times, in the playoffs that fans and analysts called for his benching. And its unclear what the Pacers will do after a second straight blowout in an elimination game at Miami. Bird acknowledged the Pacers were going "all in" this season when they re-signed David West, gave George a max deal and traded away their first-round pick to get Luis Scola from Phoenix. Stephenson could be the next Pacers player to strike it rich. But after calling out LeBron James publicly before Game 4, blowing in his ear in Game 5 and tapping James on his chin early in Game 6, some wonder if the Pacers even want Stephenson back. It all depends on whether Bird thinks Stephenson can help beat the Heat. "I dont know what the future holds for us," West said. "Obviously, everything starts and ends with the Miami Heat. You have to have a team that can get through a tough regular season but ultimately, you have to be able to beat Miami to get to the finals." Robert Griffin III Jersey . - Justin Turner is at his best with runners in scoring position, and he delivered again in a big spot for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ty Montgomery Jersey . – Team Canadas Brooke Henderson carded a 4-under 67 at Craigowan Golf and Country Club to jump into the lead at the Canadian Womens Amateur Championship on Wednesday. http://www.officialbaltimoreravensfootba...s-jersey-womens. In the calls, Hernandez discussed the murder of Odin Lloyd, including his "belief about his criminal liability" and the "extent of his control over persons charged as accessories," according to the request filed Thursday in Fall River Superior Court. Maxx Williams Jersey . "Yeah, [I heard them]," he said. "They made me miss the free throw." A year ago, Lowrys post-game antics may not have been so well received but what was snide and snarky is now endearing quick wit. Kenneth Dixon Jersey . According to a report from CSN Bay Area, the 49ers are bracing for 6-8 game suspension for their outside linebacker.This Decision, as with everything in LeBrons world, is about legacy. It is about not one, not two, not six, not seven. It is about finding a path to being the undisputed best of all time. There are two choices and only two choices. Cleveland, or Miami, as it always has been.(Image Courtesy: The Canadian Press)The Miami Option Its Decision The Sequel time. Mercifully, LeBrons not spending this process preening with Jim Gray, backlit by a cross-legged wall of grade school flunkies, about to rip the hearts out of Ohios faithful in unprecedented fashion—no easy feat. Even with that atrocity behind him, true to form, he still cant help being the most drawn-out, narcissistic soap opera in sports. Which, of course, plays fine in Miami. That is because—now let me phrase this correctly—Miami fans suck at their jobs. (A point I raised in a May 18th column on BarDown ; and an April 22nd column; and back in 2011 . In Miami, LeBron doesnt need to worry about upsetting the fan base, about jersey burnings on Ocean Drive, because South Florida fans have never really treasured their basketball team, despite three titles and five Finals in nine seasons. They had to be encouraged to attend and cheer during the first season of the Big 3, and were caught exiting the turnstiles before the miraculous end of 2013s Game 6, a situation which would have elicited Beatlemania-esque hysteria from any other fanbase. For further research on the subject, I invite you to investigate "Marlins, Miami attendance" at your local search engine facility. Despite weak tea fans, LeBron is stuck with Miami as the place to concretize his legacy, if not entirely rehabilitate his reputation. In Miami he has done the unfathomable: lived up to the hype. His Decision, his smoke machine-filled stage declarations, our impossibly high expectations of his performance—he essentially matched them all. Hes been the overwhelmingly dominant force on a team with a short bench, a creaky supporting cast, an often wobbly second banana, and four consecutive Finals appearances, winning a couple of em. The last men to achieve four straight were 1980s-era Magic and Larry (who also only won two each, and surprisingly, not just while playing each other). In Miami, in the diseased Eastern Conference, even with a patchwork reassembly of the Big 3 coupled with this seasons minimum wage ring-hunters, it would be hard to keep LeBron from reaching a fifth straight Finals.dddddddddddd And nobody has accomplished that since Bill Russell, who, if memory serves, invented basketball.(Image Courtesy: Mike Gallay)The Cleveland Option On the other side of legacy is the Bernese Mountain Dog of fans, the loyal amongst the loyal: the Cleveland Ohioan. The Browns and Indians bear legacies of endless losing married to undying support, cherished to a level few rival. In the LeBron era, marked by achievement and heartbreak, the awkwardly-named Cavaliers scratched and clawed themselves to that hallowed category most precious to the die-hard fan: historical conflict. They have been granted passage into the realm of the beloved. "Hello, Cubbies." "Oh, hello Cavs, the Maple Leafs were looking for you." Scribes will try subterfuge, to distract you with the shaky relationship between LeBron and Dan Gilbert, to make you ponder the future of Andrew Wiggins or the arrival of Kevin Love, to stoke your consideration at what scheming forces Pat Rileys hair gel conceals, but its all blather in a Twittering sea of conjecture and empty suit speculation. Cleveland is LeBrons chance at redemption, and make no mistake, at an extended window of winning. When the dusts of time settle, nobody remembers who owned which team or how much anyone got paid. They just remember who was the best and who got the rings. Nobody wanted to condemn LeBron more than me four years ago, but he proved exquisite on the court, and savvy off of it. Ill never get accustomed to the four-step layups, nor the constant whining to officials, nor forget the Decision to team up with conference rivals instead of vanquishing them, but there is one place he can go where nobody, not in Florida or Ohio or clacking at their keypad, can doubt that a victory there will heal all wounds. LeBrons choice boils down to a simple question, because in his primordial bath of substance and ego, and hype and hype met, it is all he has ever asked: Where will he best be able to build a lasting legacy of excellence, winning and respect? Cleveland. (Nobody else has EVER answered that particular question that particular way.) 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