Reggie Miller. Paul George. Rik Smits. The Indiana Pacers have been home to some great players throughout the years, all of whom have logged serious minutes with the franchise.
Now, Tyrese Haliburton is set up to be the next Pacer great. But what about the players who never got a chance to show what they could do in an Indiana uniform?
Whether it be through a trade on draft day or getting waived toward the end of their career, a large number of players passed through the Pacers organization without logging a single minute.
Let’s take a look at the 10 best players in Pacers history who never stepped foot on the court for the organization.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 1. Ricky Rubio
Ricky Rubio has enjoyed a long NBA career, and the Indiana Pacers were part of it for a brief, fleeting moment in time during the 2021-2022 NBA season by way of a trade.
The veteran point guard was traded from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Pacers in the deal that saw Indiana ship Caris LeVert to the Cavaliers. However, at the time, Rubio was dealing with a torn ACL that would keep him out for the entire season.
So, while Rubio was technically on the Pacers roster, he never got the chance to play for the organization. And on top of that, he ultimately re-signed with the Cavaliers the very next offseason.
At first glance, this deal could be considered a loss for the Pacers, but the picks they got in the deal turned into solid players. They got three picks back from the Cavaliers – a 2022 second-rounder that turned into Andrew Nembhard, a 2023 first-rounder that turned into Ben Sheppard, and a 2027 second-rounder.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 2. Sandro Mamukelashvili
Perhaps not the most notable player on this list, Sandro Mamukelashvili is still very young and has the potential to be a quality player in the NBA for a long time.
His connection to the Indiana Pacers organization comes down to a draft day decision, as Indiana was the team that selected the Georgian big man out of Seton Hall.
The Pacers picked Mamukelashvili with the 54th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, but he was traded before he ever got the chance to even pick out a jersey number with Indiana.
They shipped him off to the Milwaukee Bucks in a deal that netted the Pacers Isaiah Todd and a random assortment of second-rounders. None of the picks are of note just yet, as the Pacers also sent out some picks in the deal.
This trade was essentially Indiana’s way of pushing their selection back a year, as they didn’t want to take on a player that late in the draft. However, Mamukelashvili has been an intriguing talent during his time in the NBA.
Mamukelashvili is now with the San Antonio Spurs, and he just re-signed with them this summer. He gave Gregg Popovich real minutes after joining the team midway through the season this past year.
In 19 appearances for the Spurs, Mamukelashvili averaged 10.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 45.3% from the field and 34.3% from behind the three-point line.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 3. Davis Bertans
Davis Bertans has spent over a decade in the NBA, and it all started with the Indiana Pacers. That said, his tenure with the Pacers ended before it ever even began.
Indiana selected Bertans with the 42nd pick in the 2011 NBA Draft but traded him in a package deal that saw point guard George Hill join the Pacers.
At the time, Hill was entering his fourth year in the league, and Indiana had hopes of him running the point for a competitive Pacers roster, and that’s exactly what happened.
Hill was a key figure on the Paul George-led Pacers teams that eventually made a run to the Eastern Conference finals and endured multiple battles with the LeBron James-led Miami Heat.
As for Bertans, he joined the Spurs, where he would spend the first three years of his long career before getting traded to the Washington Wizards in 2019.
He enjoyed the best year of his career with the Wizards in the 2019-20 season, earning him a massive contract extension with Washington. Unfortunately, he was never able to refind that success and has earned fewer and fewer minutes each year since.
Now, Bertans is on the Oklahoma City Thunder roster, as he was traded by the Dallas Mavericks during the 2023 NBA Draft in a move that was made primarily to dump his salary from their books.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 4. Eddie Jones
After back-to-back cases of draft day trades, let’s move on to the polar opposite of this topic and take a look at Eddie Jones and his non-existent stint with the Indiana Pacers.
Jones enjoyed a long, 14-year career in the NBA, and at the tail end of it, he found his way to Indiana. In October of 2008, he was traded to the Pacers by the Dallas Mavericks alongside two second-rounders in a deal that saw Shawne Williams head to Dallas.
But rather than suit up for the Pacers, Jones took a different route. Once the trade went through, Jones renegotiated his contract with Indiana, allowing him to sign with a new team or retire, and less than a week after the deal went through, he was released.
After the deal, Jones never played another minute in the NBA, ending his NBA career. Technically, the Pacers were the last organization Jones was a part of.
During his 14-year career, Jones made three All-Star teams, one All-NBA team, three All-Defensive teams, and led the league in steals during the 1999-00 season.
Though Jones would have been 37 years old, he could have been a nice mentor for a young Pacers team in 2008 that was a few seasons away from making some noise in the East.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 5. Jerryd Bayless
Though he was never a star in the NBA, Jerryd Bayless quietly had a very productive career in the league as a role player, spending 11 years as primarily a backup point guard.
Beyless’ connection to the Indiana Pacers is the same as Davis Bertans’ and Sandro Mamukelashvili’s – he was drafted by them. The Pacers selected Beyless with the 11th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft.
Unlike most draft-related trades, Beyless wasn’t shipped out on draft night. Instead, the Pacers didn’t complete the trade involving him until two weeks later.
Indiana traded Beyless to the Portland Trail Blazers for Jarrett Jack, Josh McRoberts, and Brandon Rush. Jack spent one season with the Pacers, while the latter two both spent three years in Indiana.
As for Bayless, he only played two years with the Trail Blazers before getting traded for a 2011 first-round pick that eventually turned into Tobias Harris.
Bayless is the true definition of an NBA journeyman. He played for eight different franchises in his 11-year career but never spent more than two seasons with any of them.
Ironically enough, the team he was drafted by wasn’t even one of the eight teams he played for, making him an intriguing case of a Pacer who never played for the team.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 6. Danny Ferry
Similar to Jerryd Bayless, Danny Ferry was a solid NBA role player for years, spending 13 years in the NBA. However, unlike Bayless, he only played for two teams, spending 10 years with the Cleveland Cavaliers and three with the San Antonio Spurs.
As for his link to the Indiana Pacers organization, Ferry’s fate was the same as Eddie Jones. He was traded to Indiana at the very end of his career but never suited up.
Ferry was traded to the Pacers in a three-team deal that also brought Scot Pollard to town. In addition, Hedo Turkoglu was traded from the Sacramento Kings to the Spurs in the deal, Brad Miller moved from Indiana to Sacramento, and Ron Mercer was dealt by the Pacers to the Spurs.
After getting traded to the Pacers, Ferry decided to retire before ever suiting up for the organization. At the time of his retirement, Ferry was 36 years old.
The long-time role player enjoyed his best seasons while a member of the Cavaliers, with his highest-scoring year coming in the 1995-96 season when he averaged 13.3 points.
But while Ferry played his best basketball in Cleveland, the peak of his career came at the very end, as he won a championship with the Spurs in the 2002-03 season and retired the following summer.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 7. Greg Foster
Greg Foster spent his NBA career as an end-of-the-bench guy, but he stuck around for a long time. The career role player spent 13 years in the league and played for nine different franchises.
Oddly enough, Foster has multiple connections to the Pacers organization, though he never suited up for the team as a player. Foster was signed and waived by the Pacers in the 2002 offseason.
He ended up playing for the Toronto Raptors that year but only appeared in 29 games before getting waived on January 7. But that’s not where his link to Indiana ends.
Despite never playing for the Pacers, Foster was eventually hired as an assistant coach by the organization in November of 2020 as a member of Nate Bjorkgren’s staff.
In May of 2021, Foster was suspended for one game for an on-court altercation he had with Goga Bitadze. Foster’s time as a coach with the team ended that summer when Bjorkgren was fired.
As for the rest of his playing career, Foster spent four years with the Utah Jazz, but that was the most time he spent with any of the organizations he played for.
Foster’s best year was in the 1997-98 season when he averaged 5.7 points and 3.5 assists in 79 appearances with the Jazz.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 8. Serge Ibaka
One of the better players on this list, Serge Ibaka ended up passing through the Indiana Pacers organization late into his career by way of a trade this past deadline.
Ibaka was a part of the four-team trade that brought Jordan Nwora to the Pacers along with George Hill and a second-round pick. The deal was lumped in with the Kevin Durant trade that saw him join the Phoenix Suns.
The Milwaukee Bucks shipped Ibaka to the Pacers in the trade, but the big man never suited up for the organization, as Indiana waived him just two days after the deal went through.
The big man played 16 games with the Bucks this past year, but he didn’t catch on anywhere this offseason. Instead, Ibaka signed a deal with Bayern Munich to play overseas.
Ibaka spent 14 years in the NBA, most of which being played with the Oklahoma City Thunder. He made three All-Defensive teams in his career and led the league in blocks twice.
In 2019, Ibaka won a championship as a member of the Toronto Raptors, marking the only title run of his lengthy career. He was a key role player on that squad.
Though he never played a minute for the Pacers, Ibaka’s run-in with the organization was technically his last connection to the NBA.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 9. Nik Stauskas
Though he only spent six seasons in the NBA, Nik Stauskas was an absolute sharpshooter during his time in the league, recording a 47.3% mark from deep in his best season.
Stauskas’ connection to the Pacers is a recent one, as he was a part of the trade last offseason that sent Malcolm Brogdon to the Boston Celtics for a flurry of assets.
In the deal, Stauskas was shipped to Indiana along with Aaron Nesmith, Daniel Theis, Juwan Morgan, Malik Fitts, and a first-round pick. However, funnily enough, this wasn’t Stauskas’ only run-in with the Pacers.
Back in 2019, a similar situation occurred, as Stauskas was sent to the Pacers in a trade but waived before he ever stepped foot on the court for Indiana.
The Houston Rockets traded Stauskas, Wade Baldwin, Maarty Leunen, and a 2021 second-round pick to the Pacers for cash. That 2021 pick turned into Sandro Mamukelashvili, who is also on this list.
In his six years in the league, Stauskas played for seven different NBA teams. He spent the most time with the Philadelphia 76ers as a member of their “Process” era.
Unfortunately, he was never able to find a consistent home in the NBA, as he bounced around from team to team in multiple trades.
10 Indiana Pacers who never played a single minute for the team: 10. Kawhi Leonard
The poster child for this list, Kawhi Leonard is not only the best player in this group, but he’s a guy who will always be mentioned in connection to the Indiana Pacers.
Leonard was the primary piece involved in the aforementioned Davis Bertans trade that sent George Hill to Indiana, as the San Antonio Spurs were able to snag Leonard in the deal.
The Pacers selected Leonard with the 15th pick in the 2011 NBA Draft but traded him that same night. Obviously, Leonard went on to have a ton of success in the NBA.
In his 11-year NBA career, Leonard has made five All-Star Games, five All-NBA teams, and seven All-Defensive teams. He’s won two championships, one with the Spurs and another with the Toronto Raptors. Leonard was named Finals MVP in both instances.
But while the Pacers may always wonder what could have been had they held onto Leonard, the deal worked out for them as well, as Hill churned in multiple successful years with the franchise.
With Hill at the helm, the Pacers were able to make two straight Eastern Conference finals appearances in 2013 and 2014, but they ended up losing to the Miami Heat on both occasions.
That said, Leonard will always be known as the one who got away for the Pacers.