Indiana knew it would be without Tyrese Haliburton for the season after he tore his Achilles in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. But he has been joined on the injury list by T.J. McConnell (hamstring), Andrew Nembhard (shoulder), Bennedict Mathurin (week-to-week with big toe injury), Kam Jones (lower back stress reaction), and Johnny Furphy (foot).
Now add Obi Toppin to the list as he will miss at least a month, reports Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. He had left Monday’s game against Minnesota due to the injury (one game after Mathurin left a game with his foot injury).
Toppin was averaging 144 points and 6.7 rebounds a night, bringing energy off the bench for the Pacers. He will be missed.
Indiana just signed three-time Slam Dunk champion and former G-League MVP Mac McClung to a non-guaranteed contract to help fill in the backcourt due to injuries, but they had to waive center James Wiseman to open the roster spot.
The Pacers are close to qualifying for a hardship exception, which would allow them to sign a player for the short term until some of the injured players return to the court. Nembhard and Jones have been doing on-court work, according to coach Rick Carlisle, but are not yet ready to play in a game.
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