Bennedict Mathurin made his return from a toe injury on Monday for the Indiana Pacers and immediately reminded everyone why he is so valuable.
In the loss to the Detroit Pistons, Mathurin recorded 25 points (23 in the second half) on 7-for-16 shooting, three rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Furthermore, with 14 points in the fourth quarter, the Canadian native nearly willed the Pacers to victory before they ultimately lost 127-112.
Mathurin's return isn't going to save the Pacers' season. They are currently 1-13 and own the worst record in the entire league (even a prime Reggie Miller's return might not be enough... Actually, in this Eastern Conference, that's probably not entirely true. But it's still a testament to how bad Indiana has been this season).
However, having him back and making the statement he did gives the Pacers a much-needed silver lining: they can finally look towards the future.
Pacers must make a Bennedict Mathurin decision soon
This past offseason, the Pacers chose not to sign Mathurin to a rookie-scale contract extension, which will set him up to hit restricted free agency next summer.
In theory, this decision made a lot of sense. The Pacers were ready to give him the biggest role of his career so far with Tyrese Haliburton out to let him prove his worth. Plus, there is still some uncertainty about whether Mathurin can truly work out in Indiana for the long haul due to his isolation-heavy playstyle.
Unfortunately for the Arizona alum and the Pacers, he suffered a toe injury in just the second game of the season. This meant that, in a season all about experimentation and evaluation, they couldn't experiment with and evaluate Mathurin's performance.
For obvious reasons, this put the team in a dilemma. On top of them already struggling as a team, they couldn't inch closer to a solution to one of their more pressing questions: Should they keep Mathurin around past this season?
The Pacers might want to trade the 23-year-old ahead of February's deadline in order to get some value back following his exit. Or, they could decide that they've seen what they needed to see and make it a point to re-sign him in the offseason, no matter the cost.
Now that Mathurin has returned and is thriving, the Pacers can finally get back to looking towards the future and deciding what the next steps are.
Should the Pacers re-sign Bennedict Mathurin?
Yes. The answer is yes. And, it really shouldn't be much of a debate.
It is fair to question Mathurin's long-term fit in Indiana. He is a player who likes to put the ball on the ground and create his own shot. Given that the Pacers' offensive system relies on ball movement and pushing the tempo, this does make him a questionable fit with the team (some have even called him a "ball-stopper").
Here's the thing, though: it doesn't actually matter as much as people may think. He has already looked like a potential star in Indiana, and the Pacers have been successful with him on the court. There have even been times when he helped the team when they needed it the most (he scored 24 points on 6-for-14 shooting and grabbed 13 boards in Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals).
Mathurin is too good for the Pacers to move on strictly for financial reasons. And if the team wants to re-enter the title picture sooner rather than later, they need to ensure that he sticks around way past this season.