The NBA season is almost here, and Indiana Pacers basketball is almost back. With Tyrese Haliburton in place and the addition of Bruce Brown, there’s a lot to be excited about.
Indiana has spent the past week in training camp, but it hasn’t all been in Indianapolis. The team actually traveled to Nashville for part of training camp, and the story behind the move involves both Haliburton and Brown.
As relayed by Scott Agnes of the Fieldhouse Files (subscription required), Brown is a huge country music fan, but Haliburton had never been to Nashville, which is one of the homes of country music.
Indiana Pacers travelled to Nashville because Bruce Brown wanted to help Tyrese Haliburton appreciate country music
So, when Brown brought up the idea of bringing him, Haliburton turned it into a team event.
“Just make the whole team go,” Haliburton said. “It was fun.”
Haliburton will be entering his second full season with the Pacers, while Brown is set to begin his first after signing with Indiana in free agency over the summer.
Both players are going to be in the team’s starting lineup to start the preseason, and there’s a good chance that’s the way things play out during the regular season as well.
Head coach Rick Carlisle said the trip to Nashville was great for team bonding heading into the year.
“It’s really a cool thing,” he said. “It speaks to their closeness as a group and commitment to one another at this stage. That’s a great thing that just happened, and it’s a building block as we continue to build up to the dream of a championship.”
Agnes detailed the entire trip (subscription required) from the mouths of the players on Fieldhouse Files, so check out the full article over there for all the best tidbits.
For a team as young and hungry as the Pacers, any chance they get to build chemistry and grow as a team off the court is one they need to take full advantage of.
Haliburton is still only 23 years old, and Indiana has plenty of other young guys like Jarace Walker, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, and more.
So while the trip to Nashville may have seemed a bit odd without the necessary context, it was a great way for the Pacers to build some bonds heading into the season.