Pacers' president Bird supports international play; season not over, but team won't pay tax

Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird and head coach Frank Vogel held a press conference on Tuesday to discuss the injury to Paul George and the team's outlook for the 2014-15 season.

Below are some of the notable points made, mostly by Bird, but you can re-watch the entire conference on NBA.com.

On Paul George's status

While most are expecting George to miss the entire season after breaking his leg, Bird left a small window open that if George's recovery allows, it's not impossible for him to return in 2015.

While it's a huge hit for the team and the franchise, Bird was sure to keep the focus on the player, and how disappointing an outcome it is for such a hard worker.

George is expected to address the media himself at some point later this week, or possibly next week.

On international play moving forward

As he had expressed in the immediate wake of George's injury, Bird continued to voice his support for the USA Basketball program, and the idea of NBA players competing internationally in general.

On potential contingency plans

Positivity aside, the Pacers are now in a very tough spot trying to replace an All-NBA player and their best offensive weapon. How they will go about doing so is unclear, but it will involve larger roles for incumbents and, while some have suggested they do otherwise, will not involve tearing things down and accepting a losing season.

The team has also applied for the Disabled Player Exception (DPE), which would allow them $5.3 million to spend outside of the regular salary cap rules. The franchise won't go into the tax, however, and any money spent using the DPE will count for tax calculation purposes.

In other words, the team will apply for the exception but may not use it immediately, holding onto it for flexibility (the exception would expire on March 10) or using just a portion of it.

On Shawn Marion, specifically

One name rumored to be a potential George replacement is that of Shawn Marion, but context clues suggest he won't be landing in Indianapolis.

On the team's outlook for the season

The team's unwillingness to sign Marion is quite a bit of negative news (or non-news) for Pacers fans, especially after watching their defensive juggernaut stagnate after the calendar turned last season. The offense, in particular, could be terrible, having lost their two best weapons (in George and the departed Lance Stephenson) from a core that ranked 29th in offense in the season's second half.

Still, the Pacers are expressing optimism.