A year after Tyrese Haliburton’s devastating torn Achilles in Game 7 of the NBA Finals against the Thunder, things are starting to look up for the Pacers.
Haliburton’s injury in the final game of the 2024–25 season ended a magical run for Indiana that fell just one game short of the franchise’s first NBA title. It kept the Pacers’ star guard out for the entirety of this past season, which threw out the full year as Indiana finished with the league’s second-worst record at 19–63.
Still, the Pacers’ front office positioned the team to return to prominence next season, most notably by trading for Clippers big man Ivica Zubac at the February trade deadline. That came at a big price, sending out two first-round picks and fourth-year wing Bennedict Mathurin in the deal. The first of the two first-rounders was for this year’s draft, protected on picks 1–4 and 10–30. That meant that the pick would stay with Indiana unless it landed between No. 5 and No. 9.
A positive of the down year was an opportunity to add a young star next to Haliburton once he was back on the court, which made trading the 2026 first-rounder a huge gamble that came back to bite. In the draft lottery, the ping pong balls didn’t fall Indiana’s way as its pick landed at No. 5 and was sent to the Clippers, which left the Pacers without a first-round pick after a miserable season.
Despite the mishap, Zubac fills a real roster need and Indiana’s return to Eastern Conference supremacy relies on Haliburton’s return to his usual self once he hits the floor. Haliburton recently provided an update on his lengthy recovery and all seems on track with three months left ahead of his targeted return.
“Well this week is week 52, this is my one-year,” Haliburton said in a video released on his YouTube channel on Thursday. “Man, I feel so good. I’m playing five-on-five, doing our workouts every day. I can pretty much say I’m back at this point.
“I feel like I’m in shape, but there’s a difference between being in shape and being in Tyrese Haliburton shape. I feel like they’re two different things. I like to play fast so I have to get back to there, which will take some time.”
Music to the ears of Pacers fans. One of the NBA’s best guards and most clutch players says he’s back with plenty of runway ahead before he has to go full speed. The bad news for the Pacers, however, is that the East became absolutely stacked over the offseason. Giannis Antetokounmpo was traded to Miami to team up with Bam Adebayo. Jaylen Brown was dealt to the 76ers to form another contender around Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. The Cavaliers made a run to the Eastern Conference finals last season and remain a strong suitor for LeBron James, who remains unsigned. The Raptors are slated to add Kawhi Leonard pending a lingering league investigation. The Pistons won 60 games last season as Cade Cunningham continues to rise. Oh, and the Knicks had a dominant postseason run on the way to the franchise’s first title in 53 years.
With that long of a list, the biggest question for the Pacers is how realistic another run to the Finals is after a one-year hiatus. Here are three things that must go Indiana’s way for the franchise to make some noise in a loaded field:
Tyrese Haliburton doesn’t miss a beat once he’s back on the court
The biggest swing factor in Indiana’s status as a potential Eastern Conference contender next season is Haliburton, without a doubt. Pacers president Kevin Pritchard has tailored the roster around his star guard and has paid a hefty price to do so. Haliburton has been one of the NBA’s best facilitators since his arrival in Indiana and he packs a scoring punch, too.
As a Pacer, he’s averaged 19.5 points and 10.1 assists per game as the best combo of a scorer and a passer other than Nikola Jokić and, more recently, Cunningham. Haliburton shines when it matters most as Indiana’s run to the Finals included his heroics in Game 1 of both the Eastern Conference finals against the Knicks and the NBA Finals against the Thunder. His game-winners and clutch shots throughout the magical run made for some of the most memorable playoff moments in recent history.
He says he’s back although there’s some more conditioning work ahead. However, 16 months is a long time to miss. He’ll be itching to get back on the court and the Pacers will likely cautiously roll him out, at least to start the season. We saw how bad the team was without Haliburton, which makes any potential time missed a concern. If he’s fully ready to go for the first game of the season, though, the Pacers should make their mark even in a highly competitive Eastern Conference.
Ivica Zubac’s play makes the traded first-round picks a faded memory
Zubac played just five games for the Pacers after his arrival at the trade deadline. The acquisition wasn’t about last season as Indiana’s year was already long gone at that point. We haven’t seen Zubac on a competitive Pacers roster yet, but he was one of the NBA’s most impactful bigs for years before his time in L.A. ended. In 2024–25, he averaged a career-high 16.8 points and 12.6 rebounds per game in a season where he earned second-team All-Defense honors.
He averaged 14.4 points and 11.0 rebounds a night with L.A. last season. He’ll be an elite pick-and-roll partner for Haliburton, a force on the glass and a top-tier last line of defense for a team that sorely needs to improve on the defensive end. It’s a great fit on paper, but we need much more of a sample size of Zubac in Indiana before any conclusions are made on the trade.
The two first-round picks, and especially the 2026 pick, will follow Zubac’s shadow throughout his time with Indiana. L.A. took Illinois guard Keaton Wagler with Indiana’s fifth pick—the Pacers would rather have Zubac with a star guard already in tow. However, that’s a premier pick to give up for any player, and if Wagler or any names that came off the board after him shine, it will be seen as a missed opportunity unless Zubac steps in as the Pacers’ missing piece alongside Haliburton and Pascal Siakam.
The Knicks traded five first-round picks and a pick swap for Mikal Bridges two years ago, which was seen as an incredibly lofty price at the time. Now that New York celebrated a title, though, the picks are all but forgotten. Winning cures all—now, it’s the Pacers’ turn to try to rewrite history on their big deal.
Indiana’s supporting cast shines alongside Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam and Ivica Zubac
The core trio of Haliburton, Siakam and Zubac can’t do it all.
Indiana’s Finals run was heavily aided by the elite play of its non-stars. Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith shot the lights out over the postseason, Obi Toppin was solid off the bench and T.J. McConnell took over in plenty of games. All four remain on the roster, ready to get back to the playoffs after a dreadful year.
The Pacers signed Kelly Oubre Jr. to a two-year deal in free agency and he slots into the starting lineup nicely next to Haliburton, Siakam, Zubac and Nembhard. Oubre remains an extremely effective wing who can knock down shots when the opposing defense targets Haliburton and Siakam. Jay Huff is an important depth piece for Indiana after a nice year as the team’s starting center following Myles Turner’s exit. In non-Zubac minutes, Huff will be able to protect the rim and he can even shoot it a little bit, too.
During the magical run to the Finals, Indiana’s depth coupled with Haliburton and Siakam’s excellence made it the best team in the East. The Pacers remain one of the deepest teams in the NBA, they just need the supporting cast to keep showing up.
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