The Indiana Pacers have had more injuries to deal with than most NBA teams. Their starters have been crushed by injuries, none more than Tyrese Haliburton’s torn Achilles tendon from the NBA Finals. Since then, more starters have missed time.
Right now, the only starter who isn’t healthy is Aaron Nesmith. Nesmith went down with a bone bruise in his knee a few weeks ago. He was initially thought to miss around a month with the injury, which was better than expected. He had avoided serious injury.
A recent update from Rick Carlisle indicated that he will be missing more time than expected, and he is not as close to returning as fans had hoped.
GettyAaron Nesmith goes down with an injury. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
Pacers’ Rick Carlisle Gives Disappointing Update on Aaron Nesmith
Carlisle mentioned that Nesmith will still be out for a while when he was giving an update to the media.
“There’s no timetable. It’s going to be a while. Hopefully not too long. It’d be great if he could be back playing sometime this month. He’s making great progress with no setbacks. So, time will tell. I don’t have any kind of set timetable for you.”
Nesmith has already missed the last three weeks with the injury. Without him, the Pacers have struggled to make 3’s. The Pacers make the ninth-fewest 3’s in the NBA. Last season, Nesmith made over 40 percent of his shots from beyond the 3-point arc.
Without Nesmith on the floor, the Pacers have had to change what they want to do on the defensive end of he court, as well. He is one of their best perimeter defenders, so they have had to change their scheme. That has helped them survive defensively without him.
Carlisle doesn’t seem too optimistic about Nesmith’s chances of playing until the new year. That would mean that Nesmith wouldn’t be ready to go again until the Pacers have played about a third of their games.
GettyRick Carlisle yells during a game. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
The Indiana Pacers Are Being Cautious With Injured Players
Since the Pacers have the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference, they are being overcautious with their injured players. Instead of rushing anyone back, they are letting guys take their time. Indiana clearly isn’t going to be making a return trip to the Finals this season.
It might be better for the Pacers in the long run to tank this season so they can get a top-five pick. Adding someone with that level of talent to a healthy team next year could make them one of the league’s best teams for years to come. Carlisle likely understands that.
Unless Indiana starts making a miraculous run over the next few weeks, it doesn’t make sense for them to rush any player back from any kind of injury. Getting some of the younger guys on the roster some more run would make sense at the end of the year, assuming they stay healthy.
Indiana finally has enough healthy players to remain competitive against bad teams.
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