The Pacers are one of many teams who will be tanking down the stretch run of this NBA season. Unlike most others of their ilk, though, Indiana didn’t really plan to be in this position after making a Finals run last season. But Tyrese Haliburton’s torn Achilles took away the team’s top offensive option and an utterly awful stretch to begin this year have anchored the Pacers to the bottom of the standings.
Nevertheless, Indy was one of the nails the NBA hit with the anti-tanking hammer before the All-Star break. The Pacers were fined $100,000 after the league determined they violated the Player Participation Policy (which was instituted to address load management, but is used to battle tanking as well) by resting All-Star Pascal Siakam and two other starters on the second night of a back-to-back on February 3. It was not nearly as heavy a fine as the Jazz received that day; Utah was hit with a $500,00 penalty for conduct detrimental to the league. But it was still a strong slap on the wrist for Indianapolis, and one coach Rick Carlisle does not agree with.
After the Pacers were fined Carlisle said he had “no idea” what to make of the apparent violation but released a statement saying his team has been “very consistent” in their approach to the season and communication with the NBA had been “productive.”Then, on Tuesday, Carlisle revealed the depths of his frustration with the situation. 15
Appearing on The Fan Morning Show for a radio interview, Carlisle called the process the NBA underwent to determine the Pacers’ fine “ridiculous.” He further shed light on what went into that process and said the league asked the team if they had considered “medicating” Aaron Nesmith to ensure he could take the floor rather than holding him out with a hand injury.
“I didn’t agree with it,” Carlisle said. “There was a league lawyer that was doing the interview that kind of unilaterally decided Aaron Nesmith, who had been injured the night before and couldn’t hold the ball, should have played in the game. Which just seems ridiculous.
“During the interview process, I was not on it but I heard details. We asked them if they wanted to talk to our doctors about it because it’s something that was documented by our doctors and trainers. They said no, they didn’t need to, they talked to their doctors. Who did not examine Aaron Nesmith. We asked if they wanted to talk to [Nesmith] and they said no, they didn’t need to. This was shocking to me. During the interview they also asked if we considered medicating him to play in a game when we were 30 games under .500.
“I was very surprised. Obviously didn’t agree with it... That was the deal. That was it.”
Rick Carlisle today opening up about the NBA’s $100,000 fine of the #Pacers:
Full interview here: https://t.co/1rrz1gO1Ja pic.twitter.com/MgjmZFEPsH
— Kevin Bowen (@KBowen1070) February 24, 2026
It’s quite the pulling back of the curtain by the Pacers’ coach here.
The NBA is in a tricky spot in regards to handing out discipline over injury reports, to be sure, and the league has been emboldened to aggressively attack tanking given this year’s particularly audacious display. But one would hope the process entails more than a ruling by a league lawyer and doctor who, according to Carlisle, aren’t interested in even speaking to the injured party to evaluate the situation. His quote that the NBA asked about “medicating” a player to play through an injury is a very bad look for the league, too.
The Pacers are 15–43 entering play on Tuesday. It will be quite interesting to see if the NBA’s handling of this situation will impact how Indiana approaches holding players out the rest of the year.
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