"Danny Granger sat slouched in his chair, zoning out in the locker room with his game shorts on before a recent game. One of his shoes was untied. The other rested a couple of feet away.

The Indiana Pacers forward paid no attention to the jokes a couple of teammates were telling on the other side of the room.

Granger should have been focusing on what it would take to beat the Chicago Bulls that night. He has been unable to concentrate on such matters, however, as the Pacers embark on a four-game trip, starting tonight in Los Angeles against the Lakers.

What has already been the most "trying season" in his five-year career took another turn early last week when he left the team for a couple of days to deal with a family issue.

Granger declined to discuss the problem but said it's severe enough that only "time will help heal it."