Indiana Pacers co-owner Herb Simon is on the same page as his team president, general manager and coach when it comes to embattled Jamaal Tinsley: The point guard's time with the franchise is over.
Simon, who owns the team with his older brother Mel, is so sure the Pacers will trade Tinsley, he discounted other scenarios.
Simon said Tuesday he has no plans to buy out the remaining three years of Tinsley's contract. Simon also brushed off any possibility Tinsley will sit home collecting a paycheck if the franchise can't trade him.
"Tinsley, he's probably outlived his welcome here,"
Simon said. "He's a very talented player. Teams will give us a hard time because they know it's better for him and for us to have him play somewhere else. We're confident that we'll find a good place."
Team president Larry Bird said in a radio interview last month he doesn't believe in buying out contracts and that the player should "stay at home"
if they can't trade him.
The Pacers are trying to move Tinsley, who played in just 39 games last season. Tinsley is working out in Atlanta and continues to shed some of the 20 pounds he gained while sitting out most of the second half of the season.
"We think he's too talented of a player to not play again, but he's better off somewhere else,"
Simon said when asked again about the possibility of Tinsley staying away from the team if they can't trade him.
"We're going to do everything we can to help him out because he needs a new chance, but it's going to have to be somewhere else. I think he'll do a great job wherever he goes."
Simon also discussed:
Offseason roster makeover: Simon, who has taken a more hands-on approach, gave glowing reviews of the job Bird and general manager David Morway have done this summer.
Bird and Morway acquired seven players while unloading forward Jermaine O'Neal's hefty contract to give them salary cap flexibility next summer.
"I'm really impressed with what they've done,"
Simon said. "I'm impressed with their short-range, midrange and long-range plans. They have a plan to improve this team on a continuing basis, and so far they've implemented the first stage of the plan. I'm very impressed with both of them."
Sagging ticket sales: Simon said season ticket sales are worse than they were at this point last year. Indiana averaged an NBA-worst 12,221 fans last season.
"There's good news and bad news,"
Simon said. "The good news is, the word out there is much more positive. People are really getting back to the Pacers. The bad news is we have not seen any real change in the ticket sales. We're not discouraged yet, but we're working really hard to turn that around."
Shawne Williams' latest incident: Last month, Carmel police stopped a car Williams was driving and arrested passenger Darrell Smith Jr. after discovering Smith had a small amount of marijuana.
Williams was not arrested.
"The perception is worse than what really happened, but it's still bad for us,"
Simon said. "To us, any infraction is one too many, and he knows that. Like Larry said, he's already skating on thin ice."
