{"id":164432,"date":"2025-10-27T22:49:19","date_gmt":"2025-10-28T02:49:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=164432"},"modified":"2026-02-28T15:05:54","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T20:05:54","slug":"pacers-are-quietly-tanking-this-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/10\/27\/pacers-are-quietly-tanking-this-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Pacers Are Quietly Doing What Every Fan Wants Them To Do"},"content":{"rendered":"

INDIANA \u2014 The Pacers<\/a> entered the new season with uncertainty clouding their direction. After Tyrese Haliburton\u2019s<\/a> devastating Achilles tear in the NBA Finals, the team faced a sobering question \u2014 rebuild or compete? Publicly, the front office projected defiance. Subtle signs point toward Pacers tanking this season.<\/p>\n

Pacers Are Quietly Tanking This Season<\/h2>\n
\"The
Oct 30, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) shares a moment with guard T.J. McConnell (9) during the second half against the Boston Celtics at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Pacers were just one win away from their first-ever championship last season. That heartbreak made fans wonder if the front office would double down or pivot. Instead of reloading, Indiana appears to be pressing the brakes, one subtle move at a time.<\/p>\n

Public Defiance, Private Retrenchment<\/h3>\n

General manager Kevin Pritchard struck an optimistic tone in July. \u201cWe have some challenges with Ty\u2019s injury \u2026 but you know we like what we have. \u2026 I\u2019m hopeful that people write us off. Let\u2019s put it that way,\u201d he said<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Those comments gave the illusion of confidence, but the roster moves told another story. Myles Turner<\/a>, the team\u2019s longest-tenured player, walked in free agency to the Milwaukee Bucks<\/a>. Sources later revealed the Pacers\u2019 reluctance to cross into the luxury tax played a role in letting Turner go.<\/p>\n

His replacement, Jay Huff<\/a>, performs the same role at a lower level \u2014 a cost-saving downgrade that also lowered the team\u2019s ceiling. If the Pacers wanted to stay competitive, they could have pursued Brook Lopez<\/a>, who left Milwaukee for the Clippers<\/a>, or even Al Horford<\/a> using their $14.97 million mid-level exception. They also held a $14.1 million disabled player exception<\/a> from Haliburton\u2019s injury but chose not to use it.<\/p>\n

These decisions, or lack thereof, point toward a clear strategy \u2014 the Pacers tanking the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n

Carlisle Hints At A New Reality<\/h3>\n

In a recent interview with ESPN\u2019s Tim Legler, head coach Rick Carlisle was more transparent about what lies ahead. \u201cWe\u2019ve established standards, and we know this will be a season with some unique challenges,\u201d Carlisle said<\/a>. \u201cWe\u2019re missing an All-NBA player, a great playmaker and scorer. But there are opportunities for other guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Carlisle\u2019s words hinted at lowered expectations. His admission that the team must \u201cfigure out very quickly what style is best for this group\u201d reflected a coach aware of his roster\u2019s limits.<\/p>\n

Without Haliburton or backup guard T.J. McConnell<\/a>, Indiana\u2019s offense has already shown cracks. The Pacers rank 20th in turnovers per game, a sharp drop from their steady play last season. Missing McConnell\u2019s composure and Andrew Nembhard\u2019s<\/a> creation has left the team vulnerable late in games.<\/p>\n

The Injury Bug And The Long Game<\/h3>\n

The Pacers\u2019 start hasn\u2019t been easy. Two of their first three games came on the road against the Timberwolves<\/a> and Thunder<\/a> \u2014 both playoff-caliber teams. Now, injuries are piling up. Nembhard\u2019s shoulder injury will sideline him indefinitely, shrinking an already thin rotation.<\/p>\n

History suggests the Pacers could rally \u2014 they turned a 16-18 start into a 50-32 finish last year \u2014 but doing so without Haliburton is a tall order. An early 0-3 start could quickly snowball into 3-9, putting them in prime lottery position.<\/p>\n

That outcome might not be the worst thing. A smartly executed Pacers tank this season could secure one of the top prospects from a loaded 2026 draft class.<\/p>\n

The Prize Ahead<\/h3>\n

The 2026 NBA Draft is shaping up as one of the deepest in years. Cam Boozer, already impressing at Duke, headlines the class. His blend of skill and power could elevate Indiana\u2019s long-term ceiling if they land him. Darryn Peterson and AJ Dybantsa are also vying for the No. 1 pick, while Nate Ament, Dash Daniels, and Tounde Yessoufou round out an elite crop.<\/p>\n

If the Pacers stay the course, this could be a masterstroke. By embracing a quiet retool, they position themselves to find the perfect long-term running mate for Haliburton \u2014 someone to carry the torch when he returns to full health.<\/p>\n

For now, it may not look glamorous, but the Pacers tanking the 2025-26 season could be the smartest play the franchise has made in years.<\/p>\n

INDIANA \u2014 The Pacers entered the new season with uncertainty clouding their direction. After Tyrese Haliburton\u2019s devastating Achilles tear in the NBA Finals, the team faced a sobering question \u2014 rebuild or compete? Publicly, the front office projected defiance. Subtle signs point toward Pacers tanking this season. Pacers Are Quietly Tanking This Season The Pacers […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5018,"featured_media":164472,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,11,62],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-164432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-pacers","category-nba"],"modified_by":"Michael Kovacs, ADMIN","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5018"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=164432"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164432\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":164475,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164432\/revisions\/164475"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/164472"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=164432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=164432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=164432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}