The drought ended with 2:32 left in the first quarter, bringing his first competition against an angry opponent since last April. But while Goga Bitadze was destined to get drenched by the realities of NBA play on occasion, he managed to lend credence to those sunny forecasts.
The Pacers' first-round draft pick scored 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting in 24-plus minutes in Tuesday's 119-111 preseason loss to Minnesota at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. He also committed six turnovers and suffered through some arduous on-the-job training in defending elite centers, but it would have been unreasonable to expect anything else.