T.J.Ford

Anybody who’s followed the Pacers over the past couple of seasons would understand why T.J. Ford has been Marburied on Jim O’Brien‘s bench lately.

For all of his speed and attack-mode mentality that theoretically should be tailored for O’Brien’s up-tempo system, Ford’s poor decision-making, shot selection and defense was finally too much for the coach to deal with. So for the last 18 games, Ford has been racking up DNP-CD’s while Earl Watson and A.J. Price handled the point guard duties.

Now T.J. is back in the mix.

With Watson away from the Pacers following a death in his family, Ford (9.9 ppg, 3.6 apg) will be the second-string PG behind Price when Indiana plays the Pistons tonight and go to Milwaukee tomorrow.

“It’s been tough,” Ford told the Indianapolis Star. “You want to play any time you’re on the roster. It’s a waiting game and it’s out of my control. I just try to do the best I can to stay in shape and work on my game.”

Ford has reportedly been a good teammate during his benching. Pacers beat writer Mike Wells said he’s “kept a professional attitude in practice, the locker room and on the bench.”

Advice for T.J. when he does get out there: Don’t take any threes. This season Ford is 1-for-28 beyond the arc.

Will T.J. Ford ever be an NBA starting PG again?

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