After years of finding themselves stuck in the middle, the Indiana Pacers have a clear pathway to the top of the Eastern Conference. With Tyrese Haliburton at the helm and guys like Bennedict Mathurin and Andrew Nembhard on the come-up, there’s more hope in Indiana than ever.
Haliburton will be entering his second full season with the Pacers and is fresh off his first All-Star appearance, and Mathurin will be looking to build on an All-Rookie First Team campaign.
As for Nembhard, he was one of the more underrated rookies in the league last year. Unfortunately, his chance to build on last year will be delayed every so slightly.
Andrew Nembhard will miss start of Indiana Pacers preseason after getting kidney stone removed
According to head coach Rick Carlisle, Andrew Nembhard will miss the start of Indiana’s preseason slate after getting a kidney stone removed. (H/t Tony East of All Pacers)
“Nembhard has a kidney stone. It was removed yesterday. He’s going to miss a few days,” Carlisle said. “He will not make the trip. We’ll see where things are when we get back.”
Last season, Nembhard was a huge part of the Pacers’ success. He appeared in 75 games for Indiana, starting 63 of them. Nembhard averaged 9.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists while shooting 44.1% from the field and 35.0% from distance.
With Haliburton leading the charge at the point guard position and free agency addition Bruce Brown likely getting the nod at the two-guard, Nembhard will probably settle into a role off the bench.
During training camp so far, he’s been getting a lot of chances to run the offense, per Carlisle, as TJ McConnell has been dealing with an ankle issue.
“He’s playing a lot on the ball right now,” Carlisle said. “McConnell is a little limited. He’s got an ankle thing he’s working through that happened last week.”
Nembhard will be a crucial member of the Pacers’ rotation this year, contributing to a solid guard rotation that will also include Haliburton, Brown, McConnell, Buddy Hield, and Bennedict Mathurin.
It seems like Nembhard’s kidney stone issue will be a short-term problem, but he’ll miss the start of the preseason. Keep an eye on the team’s injury report and quotes that come out of training camp for a better indicator of his timeline.
After two years of falling short of the postseason, the Pacers will be looking to make it back. Nembhard will be a big part of that.