Pacers Facing Injury Crisis as Guard Depth Disappears
The Pacers are living a nightmare scenario just seven games into the season.
Already missing star point guard Tyrese Haliburton for likely the entire year with an Achilles tear suffered in Game 7 of last season’s Finals, Indiana’s backcourt has been decimated by a wave of new injuries.
Monday’s 117-115 loss to the Bucks perfectly illustrated just how bad things have gotten.
Coach Rick Carlisle was forced to use 13 different players as the team dropped to a disappointing 1-6 record. The situation got even worse during the game when two more guards went down.
Quenton Jackson, who started at point guard, left with a hamstring injury after playing 20 minutes. Rookie Johnny Furphy rolled his ankle trying to save a ball near the baseline and was later spotted using crutches.
“The hospital Pacers,” as one social media account dubbed them.
The injury list is staggering. Andrew Nembhard, who shifted from shooting guard to replace Haliburton at point, is sidelined with a shoulder injury. His status for Wednesday’s game against Brooklyn remains unclear.
Bennedict Mathurin, who stepped up from bench player to starter this season, is considered “week to week” with a toe injury. That’s a huge blow considering Mathurin was averaging an impressive 31 points in his two appearances.
Veteran T.J. McConnell isn’t available either. He’s expected to miss about a month with a hamstring injury reported back on October 9.
The situation became so dire that Indiana was granted an injury exception, which they used to sign Jeremiah Robinson-Earl. He played seven minutes off the bench in Monday’s loss.
With the team forced to play deep bench players like Taelon Peter significant fourth-quarter minutes, the Pacers face an uphill battle to stay competitive until some of their guards return to health.
What was supposed to be a season of fighting through Haliburton’s absence has quickly turned into a much bigger challenge than anyone expected.
