Indiana PacersIndiana rebuild the Haliburton–Zubac connection
The Pacers get their point guard back after a lost season. His partnership with Zubac must restore options to a team that keeps Siakam and Carlisle.
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The Indiana Pacers finished the 2025–2026 season with 19 wins and 63 defeats, fourteenth in the East and out of the playoffs.
Starting again after a 19-win season
Rick Carlisle returns to a familiar base, but Indiana come off a season far removed from their 2025 NBA Finals run. Tyrese Haliburton missed the entire 2025–2026 campaign after his Achilles tendon injury. His return changes what the group can do without erasing the collective problems that surfaced in his absence. The Pacers must rebuild playing habits around a key partnership that is still largely untested.
per game
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A new partner in the paint
Ivica Zubac arrived from the Clippers at the trade deadline in February and played only five games for Indiana. Kelly Oubre Jr. and Larry Nance Jr. have since joined the squad, with Braden Smith completing the new arrivals. Zubac must learn to play alongside Haliburton in an attack built on movement and passing. After setting a screen, his roll to the basket can give the point guard a target. If a help defender collapses, the perimeter players must be ready to receive. That is one possible tactical reading of how they complement each other, not an account of a sequence already seen.
- →Kelly Oubre Jr.Kelly Oubre Jr. · joined the squad
- →Larry Nance Jr.Larry Nance Jr. · joined the squad
- →Braden SmithBraden Smith · joined the squad
Offensive reference points in the current squad
2025–26 regular season, all teams combined. Selection of players with at least ten games; not an exhaustive ranking. Not all of the new arrivals produced these numbers with their current club.
Pascal Siakam, a reference point in the squad
21 % of the team's scoring averages
14 % of the team's assist averages
Ratios of per-game averages for 2025–26; the player and the team have not necessarily played the same number of games. SNA orders of magnitude, not official shares of the totals.
Siakam and Carlisle's supporting cast
Pascal Siakam remains a leading offensive option. Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith can complete the perimeter core around Haliburton. Our projection pairs these four players with Zubac as a plausible base, subject to the coach's choices and availability. T.J. McConnell provides cover at point guard; Obi Toppin, Jarace Walker, Oubre and Nance widen the options on the wing and inside. Jay Huff offers another possibility at centre. No player in camp is guaranteed minutes here.
Point guard
On the wings
Inside
SNA season projection, not an official starting five or a guaranteed available line-up for the opener. Absences and uncertainties are detailed in the dated update.
Three-point shooting, player by player
2025–26 regular season, all teams combined. Red line: club average, 35.6%. Selection: minimum ten games and at least one attempt per game.
Availability: the picture as at 14 October
As at 14 October 2026, Johnny Furphy is listed as out; McConnell, Walker, Nesmith and Nembhard are uncertain, day to day. These preparation statuses and return estimates do not confirm availability for the opening game. The roles discussed above relate to the season as a whole.
The squad: 20 players
Official preparation list: 20 players. Positions follow the official categories; they do not indicate a rotation hierarchy. Appearing on this list guarantees neither a permanent contract nor playing time.
| Player | Status | Pts | Reb | Ast | 3PT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guards | |||||
| Tyrese Haliburton | – | – | – | – | |
| Braden Smith | Newcomer | – | – | – | – |
| T.J. McConnell | Doubtful | 9.4 | 2.2 | 5.1 | – |
| Johnny Furphy | Out | – | – | – | – |
| Ben Sheppard | – | – | – | – | |
| Quenton Jackson | – | – | – | – | |
| Forwards · versatile positions | |||||
| Obi Toppin | 11.6 | 4.4 | 2.3 | 35.2 % | |
| Andrew Nembhard | Doubtful | 16.9 | 2.8 | 7.7 | 36.1 % |
| Jarace Walker | Doubtful | – | – | – | – |
| Kelly Oubre Jr. | Newcomer | – | – | – | – |
| James Johnson | – | – | – | – | |
| Jalen Slawson | – | – | – | – | |
| Aaron Nesmith | Doubtful | 13.8 | 4.2 | 1.9 | 37.9 % |
| Kobe Brown | – | – | – | – | |
| Pascal Siakam | 24 | 6.6 | 3.8 | 35.8 % | |
| Centres and big men | |||||
| Larry Nance Jr. | Newcomer | – | – | – | – |
| Jay Huff | – | – | – | – | |
| Ivica Zubac | 14.1 | 10.6 | 2.2 | – | |
No SNA profile available: Keba Keita (centre), Rienk Mast (centre). They complete the 18 players in the table. 2025–2026 averages, all teams combined, for players with records. “–”: unverified data, fewer than ten games or fewer than one three-point attempt per game. Statuses recorded on 15 October: preparation estimates, no guarantee for the opener. Camp group, not the final rotation.
The movement must regain its efficiency
The point guard's passing quality and Siakam's presence are strengths. The challenge is to turn movement into good decisions while tightening up the defence. Carlisle wants to rebuild a competitive team and fit Zubac into this collective game. One player's return is therefore not enough to automatically restore Indiana to their 2025 level.
Key supports
- Haliburton's return to run the offence.
- Siakam as the main offensive reference.
- A partnership to build with Zubac.
Areas to work on
- Rediscovering collective habits.
- Improving defensive consistency.
- Making the Haliburton–Zubac connection work.
A climb to be built
Getting back to the playoffs is a reasonable goal, without predicting a specific place in a reshaped Eastern Conference. The things to watch are the Haliburton–Zubac connection, the possessions run by the reserves and defensive consistency. These markers will say more than any single individual performance about how the Pacers become a coherent team again.
Returning to the playoffs is a reasonable aim, without predicting a specific place.
The first reference points are partnerships and roles to watch, not an established hierarchy or a guarantee of results.
The regular season opens against the Pelicans in New Orleans on 22 October at 1:00 Brazzaville time (0:00 UTC), which is the evening of 21 October local time. See the Indiana Pacers team page and the match page.
Thursday 22 October 2026, 01:00 Brazzaville time · match centre
- The team’s live schedule appears here.
Countdown to tip-off.