Pacers look to improve next season

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Frank Vogel is excited for the future of his young team.

In his first press conference since his Pacers were knocked out of the playoffs by the Miami Heat, Frank Vogel was thinking long term rather than dwelling on the past.

“Basically, we've got something that can be very big and I think (players) think that now more than ever,” Vogel said.

Questions still linger around the future of Pacers Roy Hibbert and George Hill. Both players are restricted free agents, so teams can try to sign them. The Pacers would have to match the offer to keep Hibbert and Hill in Indianapolis. Regardless of the possible off-season transitions, Vogel says his team will be in contention for championships.

“We have a young core of guys that are going to get better,” Vogel said. “We are going to have a chance to win it all for the next five to seven years.”

Vogel has not completed a full 82-game season as a coach, but the young Pacers head coach is comparing his team to the best in the sport.

“Look at teams like Boston, Miami, San Antonio — these are teams that have cores of players in place that have been together for years and they have systems that have been executed for years,” Vogel said. “We’ve got a young core of players in place and I feel like we have more room for growth than any team that is really competing for a championship right now.”

If the Pacers want to get the championship, it will be led by veteran David West. The Pacers forward was a crucial low-post player and leader in the series against the Heat and Vogel was impressed with his play following his ACL injury last year.

“He had no base, no foundation of conditioning or strength in his knee,” Vogel said. “We just throw him into a lock-out style schedule and he was terrific.”

With a full off-season to rest, West could be even better next year.

“If he can have a full training camp and September to build his conditioning, I think he has room for growth next year,” Vogel said.

Growth was the repeated theme for Vogel. His team’s average age is 26 years old, with David West being the oldest at 31.

The Pacers finished the 2011-2012 season with a 42-24 record and had their best winning percentage since 2004.