This stopped being funny a while ago and is just sad now.
Would you believe if I told you the Indiana Pacers aren’t a good basketball team now? What would have been shocking before the season has become a disappointing reality. Just a year ago, Pacers fans were over the moon at our shiny new basketball team. One year removed from having a potential playoff run snatched from them due to injury, the 2023-24 Pacers looked to redefine basketball with their fast-paced, shot-happy, high-flying style of play. Every time down the court, there was at least a 40% chance for a highlight dunk, or, if they were forced into the half court, an incredible display of ball movement leading to an open three.
However, this year, they look the exact opposite despite keeping the same players since the 2024 trade deadline. Of course, injuries have hampered Indiana’s ability to keep a consistent rotation going, but they have not done a great job adjusting with their available players. We’ve covered this strange start to the season by diving into statistics and looking at what’s went wrong. It’s been a baffling start to the year.
In 2023-24, the Pacers shot 72.2% from two-point range with defenders six feet or more away. The Pacers were automatic from two-point range, especially with no defenders to worry about. This season, however, the Pacers are anything but automatic, as their open two-point percentage has dropped to 60%, over 12 percent lower. Additionally, the Pacers are taking an average of two fewer shots per game from the restricted area and two fewer per game from the paint compared to last season.
Take a look at this clip. Notice anything that stands out? Perhaps the score? Yeah, that used to be pretty commonplace last season. 40-point quarters and 80-point halves were not unusual for the 2023-24 Indiana Pacers, as their fast-paced, Loyola Marymount-esque offense allowed them to rack up bucket after bucket. Although they gave up plenty of points with their defense, they often weathered the storm by simply out-scoring their opponents.
Last season, Indiana scored 61.5 points per first half, ranking second in the league. This season, however, they have not even cracked the top 15, as they rank 19th in first-half points with 55.2 per game. Additionally, they are even worse on the road, where they average only 52.8 points per first half, which is fifth-worst among road teams. Going further with the road woes, Indiana’s average point margin through three quarters this season has been -3.9. In other words, the Pacers are usually down by an average of 3.9 points after three quarters. Pretty bad, right? Well, it gets worse. On the road, they are down by an average of 7.6 points after three quarters, compared to actually leading by 0.9 points after three quarters at home.
Last season, while the Pacers were a dynamo at home, going 26-15, they were also serviceable on the road, finishing slightly above .500 at 21-20. This season, however, the Pacers are easily the worst on the road among competing teams, with a 3-11 record and an average of losing by 9.4 points per game. While the Pacers are performing decently in Gainbridge Fieldhouse, with a 7-4 home record, they completely fall apart in enemy territory, as their average points per game drop from 117.6 to 111.1, their three-point percentage drops from 40.4% to 34.7%, and their free throw percentage even drops by almost five percent.
While some may point to Tyrese Haliburton’s issues as to why the Pacers have not been performing well, that is becoming less and less the case. Over the last 10 games, Haliburton has averaged 20.7 points, 8.3 assists, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game on 48.3/40/89.3 splits. Indiana’s record in these games is a paltry 3-7, with two losses to the tanking Toronto Raptors, a loss to the Detroit Pistons, a loss to the Cam Thomas-less Brooklyn Nets, where Indiana only put up 90 points, and, most recently and perhaps most embarrassingly, a loss to the Charlotte Hornets, who were missing LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges, and over half their rotation.
If you have been a fan of this team for a while, you know how seriously Tyrese Haliburton takes winning. This is the same man who went on record last season and stated he was “Tired of being a loser.” That makes scenes like this even harder to swallow. Sunday’s loss to Charlotte once again dropped the Pacers’ record to five games below .500, a number they did not hit last season. While they are still the ninth seed in the East due to how bad the conference has been this season, and only eight games behind the sixth-seeded Milwaukee Bucks, they will still need to string some wins together to climb the rankings, as they cannot keep counting on other teams to do their work for them.
Sure, some problems can be fixed, such as the absences of Aaron Nesmith, Ben Sheppard, and the limitation of Andrew Nembhard following his return from injury, but will those three players magically turn this team’s season around and fix all of their problems? It is possible, but I wouldn’t put my money on it. Nesmith, Sheppard, and Nembhard all provide help with defense, which is easily Indiana’s worst department this season, but they are not miracle workers. Something needs to change, and I suspect it will.
When your franchise player and supermax contract holder talks about not wanting to “piss away a year of his career or the organization’s,” it may be time to take notice. It’s nice to see that Haliburton cares, and I’m sure everyone else on the team cares as well, but it’s time to see some improvement.
Indiana has two more games against middling teams before embarking on the most brutal stretch of the season. From December 19 to January 14, the Pacers will face 11 playoff teams and have eight road games to worry about, facing the Thunder, the Celtics twice, the Suns twice, and the Cavaliers twice before their schedule eventually softens up. It’s hard to say, but if Indiana does not get their act together by this stretch, and their record falls even harder by the end, it may be time to throw in the towel for the season. After all, they own their 2025 first-round pick, and the 2025 NBA Draft is loaded with talent. Come February, if this team has not gotten their act together, we may see a soft tank with more minutes distributed to the young guys. It’s hard to tell at this moment, and it’s certainly possible for Indiana to turn their season around, but with a concrete reason for their current failure being absent, that may be easier said than done.
PSA: Even the most passionate and loyal fans are allowed to take mental health breaks from their team.
— Pacers & Fever Uniform Tracker (@PacersUniTrackr) December 5, 2024
I will leave you with one message. If you are tired of watching this team and find it harder and harder to get invested in Pacers basketball with every loss, don’t force yourself to watch. You are no less of a fan if you feel like taking a break from watching your favorite team. Prioritize your mental health and happiness first because you can always go back to basketball whenever you want. Let’s hope the Pacers figure this out because it’s currently looking pretty rough.
No shame in turning into Andy from Woody’s nightmare for a few weeks