Injury Updates on Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nembhard, Obi Toppin, Tyrese Haliburton
Four rotational players are now missing time, including the Pacers' top two wing defenders. And Tyrese Haliburton has yet to hit his stride. There's now a big opportunity for Mathurin, Sheppard, etc.
The Indiana Pacers are scrambling. They dropped below .500 over the weekend after a blowout loss in Charlotte by 20.
Now just three weeks into the 2024-25 regular season and they’re not in a good place from a health perspective. They have two likely season-ending injuries (James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson, both Achilles tears), and several more players are now out for an extended period.
Even before that, they’re down to one center and in need of adding depth behind Myles Turner. To be determined on that front.
On Sunday, before the Pacers hosted the New York Knicks, head coach Rick Carlisle shared more details about their current reality.
First, guard T.J. McConnell is available after not joining the team to Charlotte due to illness.
Forward Obi Toppin played almost 21 minutes in Friday’s loss, but he was on the bench for the entire fourth quarter. He was added to the injury report with a left ankle sprain and Sunday — against the Knicks, his former (and hometown) team — will be his first missed game since he was acquired by the Pacers before last season. He played in all 83 games last season.
Starting forward Aaron Nesmith is dealing with an unspecified left-ankle injury. He’s been in a walking boot for about a week and has been ruled out through the end of the month. “Aaron will not play until sometime in December at the earliest,” Carlisle said, confirming what I reported last week that Nesmith was out for several weeks.