CLEVELAND, OHIO – JANUARY 12: Jarace Walker #5 Andrew Nembhard #2 and Pascal Siakam #43 of the Indiana Pacers celebrate during the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on January 12, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Pacers defeated the Cavaliers 108-93. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)

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INDIANAPOLIS – The popular phrase used to describe the 2025-26 season for the Indiana Pacers (and Boston Celtics) is “gap year”. Superstar guard Tyrese Haliburton is out for the 2025-26 campaign with an Achilles tear, so things will naturally look different in the coming months.

The term is applied to the Pacers largely because of the reality that their ceiling is temporarily lower. They reached the Eastern Conference Finals in 2024, then the NBA Finals in 2025. With Haliburton healthy, the team’s peak is incredibly high. The gap year expression comes from the thinking that the Pacers are embarking on a one-season journey without that same peak, but they could reach it again when Haliburton is back.

But the Pacers themselves don’t agree with the notion. They’re moving forward with hopes to win as much as they possibly can this season.

“People are saying this is a ‘gap year’ for the Pacers. We don’t view it that way. That’s never been how we’ve operated,” Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan said during an appearance on the Setting The Pace podcast. “We go out there to try to compete to win every season. And obviously, there’s certain seasons where circumstances make it difficult. I’m not saying that’s what this year is, because I think we have a good core group of guys returning who want to win.”

It is certainly a tricky spot for the blue and gold to be in. Their best player and two-time All-NBA point guard won’t play this year. Even with the hope of winning as much as they can, they’ll have to do so with players in different roles.

Andrew Nembhard will become the starting point guard, sliding down from the two to fill Haliburton’s spot. Nembhard’s place will be taken by Bennedict Mathurin in the opening five. Myles Turner left Indiana too, which also brings down the Pacers potency for the coming season. His role will be filled by Jay Huff or Isaiah Jackson.

Last season, the Pacers starting lineup of Haliburton, Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, and Turner had a net rating of +8.86. Nembhard, Nesmith, and Siakam were on the floor with two different players for a total of just 18 minutes, and Indiana lost those minutes by three thanks to a possession imbalance. That matches intuition suggesting a temporary step back might be coming for the Pacers – their new-look group has to build chemistry and has a drop in talent level.

Why the Pacers will continue to have similar goals this season

It’s a reasonable thought that Indiana could win fewer games this season. They have their own first-round draft pick in 2026 and could have a solid selection yet are too good to outright tank. But the notion of a gap year solely on that basis misses the point of any NBA season for each team.

29 teams won’t be the NBA Champion in 2026. Many of those groups know that they’re not even capable of doing so. Instead, some franchises embark on fact-finding seasons with the goal of developing players and gathering data.

Of course, every team would love to win every game. But it’s not like the Pacers get nothing from their 82 games this coming season. There is a gap in expectations from 2025 to 2027, that’s undeniable. But the opportunity in front of the Pacers – to develop some of their younger pieces, learn more about their group, and establish more versatility for the roster – isn’t a gap in any way.

“It’s going to present a great opportunity in some form,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said of the year ahead. “I saw a thing today where they had us ranked 20th or 21st in the league going into next year. That’s good motivation. So we’ll have a chance to have a real opportunity to help develop some guys in some real quality minutes. And we’re trying to win.”

In some ways, the Pacers current roster build is ideal for their shaken short-term reality. If a team was forced to lower their ceiling and develop pieces for a year, they’d want to give younger players as much playing time as possible. Fortunately for Indiana, almost all of their less-experienced players are already rotation pieces.

Nembhard, Mathurin, Nesmith, Jackson, Obi Toppin, Jarace Walker, and Ben Sheppard all project to be rotation players for the blue and gold this year. All of them were drafted in 2020 or later. Huff is older but didn’t debut in the NBA until 2021.

That’s 8 of Indiana’s 10 expected rotation talents that are still at a point in their career where development should be expected — T.J. McConnell and Siakam are the exceptions, and it’s not like veterans can’t improve.

So one key goal of this season for the Pacers will be pouring into young talent. Carlisle has improved his player development abilities since coming to Indiana, and it’s part of the reason he was given a contract extension earlier this month.

“Part of the strength of our coaching staff is the ability to develop players,” Buchanan said.

On top of leaning into their younger talents — perhaps 2023 second-round selection Johnny Furphy or 2020 lottery pick James Wiseman could get playing time as well — the Pacers may be able to explore different ways of playing this season beyond their established identity.

Haliburton is among the best, maybe the best, transition players in the NBA. He’s a one-of-one passer and low-turnover player. Indiana’s up-tempo style is so potent because of the star guard.

Without him, Indiana will have to find the right balance of fine-tuning the way they will play in two seasons while also determining what works best for their 2025-26 group. Is it a slower pace? Smaller lineups, or perhaps bigger ones? These are things Carlisle and his staff can explore this year, and that versatility will last beyond one campaign.

Slowing down may be better for the specific players Indiana has available this season. Siakam and Mathurin, in particular, can really get going as scorers in a face-up game. But how does that help Indiana once Haliburton is healthy and their old style returns? It’s logical for the blue and gold to find the equilibrium between their typical rapid pace and the newer, unique lineups and tempo that will help them win this year.

So, it is a gap year for the Pacers only under the umbrella of a championship-or-bust mentality. But between player development and stylistic considerations, plus growth in versatility, it is far from a year off for Indiana. There’s still a lot at stake and a lot to learn. The franchise needs to nail it all.