Pacers' Dunleavy out to reclaim place in starting lineup

Wingman Mike Dunleavy doesn't have to be reminded about the uncertainty related to his role with the Indiana Pacers.

There are eager, young teammates ready to take his minutes.

There are questions whether he will get back to being the player who averaged 19.1 points a game three seasons ago.

And there's free agency awaiting Dunleavy after the season.

He prepared himself all summer, ready to prove the skeptics wrong and let his younger teammates know they will have a fight on their hands if they expect to take his minutes.

"I'm ready," Dunleavy said. "I had a good summer. I don't have any predictions or anything like that, but I'm ready to play."

The reason Dunleavy is feeling good is he experienced a summer of basketball without any rehabilitation work required on his right knee for the first time since 2007.

Dunleavy would rather erase the past two years from his memory.

Knee problems, which eventually led to major surgery, limited him to 18 games two seasons ago, and he was never comfortable last season when he averaged 9.9 points, his lowest since his rookie season.

He said last season felt similar to his rookie year with Golden State.

"Last year, I don't think he had the strength in his legs or the confidence or a combination of both," Pacers coach Jim O'Brien said. "We missed a guy with a basketball IQ that's off the charts. I missed his scoring off slashes to the basket and his ability to stretch the court."

A couple of days into training camp and Dunleavy is already showing signs of his former self.
"You can definitely see that he's getting back to the way he was before he got hurt, and we've missed the old Mike," forward Danny Granger said. "He makes everything easier for everybody out there."