When the Indiana Pacers started the beginning of the season with a mostly healthy roster everything seemed to be looking up.
Haliburton was back after 16 months off with no restrictions. Zubac was ready to bring a new element to the system. And the team was ready to put last year's misery behind them.
Then, not even one day into Pacers' training camp, Rick Carlisle shared that Larry Nance Jr. hurt his hamstring a few weeks prior to the start of the season. 5 days later, T.J. McConnell doesn't play in the FanJam scrimmage game causing eyebrows to raise.
A week later after making his return in Ames, Iowa, Tyrese Haliburton missed the Pacers second preseason game against Atlanta with an ankle injury. He put the worries to rest when he played in the next game against Oklahoma City, but Jarace Walker and Aaron Nesmith both missed the final two exhibition games before the start of the regular season without any clarity on the severity of the injuries.
Oct 23, 2026; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Pacers center Ivica Zubac (40) shoots the ball while Dallas Mavericks forward Naji Marshall (3) defends in the first half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Opening night came and the Pacers were ready to kick the season off in New Orleans. They entered the game still without McConnell and Nesmith --thanks to a couple hamstring strains, and things got even worse as they lost Ben Sheppard at the end of the third quarter, which later was revealed as a torn meniscus.
Desperate for some positive news, Carlisle shared that Nesmith would return for the home opener against Dallas but would be on a minutes restriction. Unfortunately, that positive news didn't last as the Pacers got absolutely embarrassed in the first half when they trailed by as many as 37 points. Nonetheless, the level of concern remained moderate following the blowout loss.
Looking for a bounce-back game against the Brooklyn Nets two days later, Kelly Oubre Jr. stepped on Zubac in the middle of the first quarter as the two were going for a rebound. The big man exited the game and did not return. Zubac was seen leaving the arena in a boot and on crutches, meaning the sprained ankle was going to need time to heal and the Pacers starting center would miss some time.
On the second night of back-to-back, the Pacers traveled to Milwaukee with a shorthanded roster hoping to start a winning streak. Instead, the complete opposite happened. The Pacers went ice cold from the field and during it, Haliburton was seen on the exercise back with a massive wrap around the upper part of his left leg. Two days later, the Pacers announced that Haliburton would miss at least the next two weeks with a hamstring strain --the fourth of the season for the Pacers-- with no timetable for his return.
Oct 23, 2026; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) in the second half against the Dallas Mavericks at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
This was a crushing blow to the Pacers and to the fan base. Having to watch this team play last season without Haliburton was miserable and there was no sign of hope. Indiana, not even 5 games into the season, will be without their franchise star for a significant period of time and the excitement from the beginning of the season has all but been deflated.
With an opportunity in front of the Pacers' faithful at Gainbridge Fieldhouse Wednesday night, Indiana had a chance to make some noise with an upset victory over the star-studded Philadelphia 76ers on national TV. After outscoring the 76ers 36-13 in the third quarter, Indiana saw a 13-point lead evaporate as Tyrese Maxey dropped 17 of Philly's 39 fourth-quarter points enroute to a 114-109 come-from-behind victory.
Proud of the effort despite the outcome, maybe the Haliburton-less Pacers learned a thing or two last season on how to play without him. This was an extremely difficult test, and the Pacers were a few made shots away from pulling off an upset victory.
Oct 13, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin (1) during warm ups before a preseason game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
With an opportunity to get right against a struggling Miami Heat team on Friday, the Pacers headed to South Beach with the injury report looking identical to the 76ers game. Then, about three hours prior to tip-off another name was added to the list: Obi Toppin. The Pacers best bench player was listed as questionable with back spasms and ended up sitting out in this one, making a hobbled Pacers' roster depleted.
After leading 42-36 after the first, Indiana got outscored 109-83 the remainder of the game and lost by 20 points. A horrendous defensive effort saw Miami's Klay Thompson turn the clock back to 2018, watching him drill 7 wide-open three-pointers. And with the Pacers shorthanded in the frontcourt, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo dominated by combining for 58 points on 24-33 shooting, 27 rebounds, 13 assists, 3 steals and a block.
With 6 of the Pacers 14 standard roster players out --4 of which are considered their top-seven guys-- winning is going to be an incredibly difficult challenge no matter the opponent.
Oct 25, 2026; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) tries to drive past Brooklyn Nets forward Julius Randle (30) during the second half at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
If Haliburton is out for at least two weeks, here are the opponents who the Pacers will face:
-Sunday Nov. 1 - Brooklyn Nets
-Monday Nov. 2 - Atlanta Hawks
-Wednesday Nov. 4 - @ Memphis Grizzlies
-Saturday Nov. 7 - Denver Nuggets in Mexico City
-Monday Nov. 9 - @ Dallas Mavericks
-Wednesday Nov. 11 - Washington Wizards
Including the previous two games the Pacers have played without Haliburton, this would make eight games at minimum Indiana will have without their starting point guard. Sitting with a 2-4 record, the best case scenario is that the team is floating around .500 by his return. However, this is a daunting task to ask with other key contributors also sidelined.
The main goal the next 10 days should be to win as many games as possible while also maintaining health. The margin for error is razor thin for the Pacers during this stretch and they need multiple players to play at their best for a chance to keep their record afloat.
The bulk of the responsibility will be on Pascal Siakam to do All-Star level things, but as we saw in Miami, if he struggles from the field the Pacers are limited with scoring options. Andrew Nembhard has done everything you could have asked from him in his role, but the surrounding pieces have not done enough.
Oct 30, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Aaron Nesmith (23) drives the ball against Miami Heat guard Klay Thompson (11) during the first quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Isabella Frias-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
If I am looking at anyone on the roster who has to take their game to another level, it starts with Nesmith. He's a fan-favorite who was otherworldly in a few of the Pacers postseason battles in 2025, but his inability to create shots for himself and others limits his value on the offensive side of the ball without Haliburton.
Nesmith is a great 3-and-D player who is lackluster as an on-ball creator. And without Haliburton, the looks he has been getting from distance aren't as clean. His three-point percentage is his lowest with the blue and gold at 34.5% on 5.8 attempts per game. And on top of that, he's only made 39.6% of his field goals, missing several looks around the rim.
Ever since returning from his left hamstring strain, he's been on a minutes restriction. While he is slowly working to increase his minutes load, you can understand why he might be out of sync with where he is accustomed to being.
His skill set fits in perfectly when this ecosystem is at full strength, but the limitations to his game are magnified when it's not. While he will never be relied on as the go-to scorer, his catch-and-shoot three-point shooting must improve as it will help open the offense for Siakam and Nembhard.
Oct 26, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Brayden Burries (0) drives to the basket against Indiana Pacers guard Kelly Oubre Jr. (10) and forward Pascal Siakam (43) in the second half at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
When the Pacers signed Oubre in free agency the goal was for him to be a scoring punch off the bench with defensive versatility. As per usual with this season, nothing has gone to plan. The numerous amount of injuries have thrust him into a bigger role as he has started 3 of the first give games.
Indiana's system requires time to adapt to and you can see that with Oubre. He seems to be figuring out the system and where to be on a nightly basis. As the season prolongs this will be less loud than it is now, but multiple times this season you can tell he is just not sure where to be within the offense.
Additionally, he is taking more contested shots than he is taking wide-open. He is shooting a career-worst (22.7%) from three but a career-best (61.5%) from two. 29.2% of his looks are at the rim for 64.3%, 18.8% are between 3-10 feet for 55.6%, and 45.8% are from three-point range for 22.7%.
The Pacers should look to find ways to get him more opportunities to score the basketball, preferably inside the arc. With the limtied amount of on-ball scorers the team has, getting him confidence and using him in a bigger role will benefit everyone. Relying on him to be mostly a floor spacer while shooting such a poor percentage from outside is hurting the offense.
Oct 30, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) drives the ball against Miami Heat guard Davion Mitchell (2) during the first quarter at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Isabella Frias-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
There is no perfect solution to playing without Haliburton, but you have to get more contributions from the remainder of the roster that is healthy. Through two games this season without him, Indiana has played 2 great quarters (3rd versus Philly and the 1st against Miami) and 6 underwhelming ones.
Multiple players have stepped up at different times, but they haven't been able to sustain it through the length of the game. Indiana will need complete games from their top available players, while the role players filling out the rest of the rotation will have to fill in the gaps with hard play, making open shots, rebounding and a stronger effort on the defensive side of the ball.
In less than a week (Nov. 5 to be exact), the Pacers will be able to sign a veteran to a minimun contract. If Zubac, Haliburton and McConnell continue to be sidelined with injuries, looking to add a point guard or a center to the roster would be beneficial. However, the available pool of players don't move the needle.
As for now, the Pacers have to treat the next few weeks like someone driving a beat-up car that's falling apart. While they can't afford to take it to the shop just yet, they have to keep squeezing every last mile out of it hoping it doesn't break down even more on their commute to work. Things will eventually get better, but for now, they have to maintain until their roster is fully restored.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/pacers/onsi as Can the Pacers survive with Haliburton sidelined? .
