Pacers limp toward finish line after near-title run
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Less than a year after coming within two quarters of their first NBA championship, the Indiana Pacers are stumbling to the end of a bruising 2025/26 campaign. With five games remaining, Rick Carlisle’s club sits at 18-59, a sharp fall from last June’s Finals appearance.
“We talk a lot about just staying with the process,” guard Andrew Nembhard said. “Having that competitive energy when it doesn’t really matter is only going to make us better for next season.”
Indiana opened the season 1-13 as injuries piled up, forcing the front office to sign multiple players to short-term hardship contracts. Carlisle said the constant roster turnover made it difficult to establish continuity. “When things get like this, you’ve just got to find a way to operate that’s consistent and positive,” the coach noted, praising the character of the fill-in players.
More injury setbacks
All-Star forward Pascal Siakam sprained his left ankle and suffered a lower-back bruise in Friday’s loss to Charlotte. He has been ruled out of Sunday’s road matchup with Cleveland; the NBA’s official injury report lists only the ankle sprain.
Siakam will be joined on the sidelines by three regulars: Nembhard (thoracic and lumbar injury management), Aaron Nesmith (cervical strain) and reserve guard T.J. McConnell (bilateral hamstring management). Ben Sheppard (right hip strain) and rookie Jarace Walker (sacral contusion) are questionable against the Cavaliers.
Quiet offseason expected
Cap analyst Keith Smith of Spotrac projects a relatively modest summer in Indiana after February’s trade for center Ivica Zubac. If the Pacers keep their top-four-protected 2026 first-round pick, the club is currently forecast to sit above the first tax apron, a threshold it has avoided for more than two decades. A salary-shedding move could follow.
Should the pick fall between No. 5 and No. 9 and convey to the Clippers, Indiana would likely slip just below the 2026/27 luxury-tax line, providing greater flexibility moving forward.
The Pacers close the regular season next week still searching for consistency—and healthier bodies—before turning their focus to an important offseason.
Source: Hoops Rumors
