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Indiana Pacers
Aug 5, 2025 2:16 PM EDT
Just because the Indiana Pacers might not win 50 games next season doesn’t mean the year won’t be fun.
After losing Myles Turner to free agency and Tyrese Haliburton to injury, the Pacers have two glaring holes in their roster. They added center Jay Huff in an effort to replace Turner and will slot Andrew Nembhard to the lead guard spot.
The Pacers, without Haliburton, lack some star power, but a starting five of Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, and Huff should be solid. Rick Carlisle, long a fan of Mathurin’s, announced his plans to start the electrifying wing at the shooting guard spot.
“I’ll break the news right here: I’m projecting him as our starter at two this year,” he told Caitlin Cooper. “I said, ‘You’re going to be with the starters on day one. It’s your job to lose.'”
Last season, Mathurin averaged 16.1 points while shooting 34 percent from deep. On defense, he is a high-effort player, although his volume scoring remains his biggest strength, and Carlisle wants him to stuff the stat sheet.
“He has such great gifts as a scorer,” raved the head coach. “And our job as coaches is to meld guys like him that aren’t necessarily seamless fits into a style that is effective for the rest of the guys and bring both forces, hopefully, closer together as time goes on.”
With Siakam and Mathurin leading the scoring attack and Nembhard and Nesmith anchoring the defense, the Pacers may be down heading into next season, but they are far from out.
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Jonah Kubicek