The Indiana Pacers are now without Tyrese Haliburton, Ivica Zubac, and TJ McConnell. That means they are without three of their top six (at the very least, it's eight) players, only five games into the season. That doesn't even consider Ben Sheppard's significant knee injury!
While replacing any of these guys is extremely difficult due to the caliber of their play, Jay Huff has stepped in admirably (albeit with average quality) for Zubac, and Quenton Jackson is doing an excellent job in McConnell's role.
Finding someone to step in for Haliburton was the doom of last year's Pacers. It was not the only factor in the gap year Indiana eventually suffered through, but it was probably the largest one.
For a night, though, Andrew Nembhard stepped up to be the replacement engine in the Pacers' offense, pouring in 18 points and 14 assists in the absence of Haliburton.
The Pacers did fall to the Philadelphia 76ers by a final score of 114 to 109, but it is exciting to see the guard out of Gonzaga be able to carry such a large offensive load in the absence of the Pacers' superstar point guard.
Nembhard is often miscast as a scorer and spark plug in a way that underestimates his general skill set. Maybe during the absence of Haliburton, we will get to see a new side of the Canadian wing that will lead to an improved team going forward, preferably one that has more options when it comes to creation for themselves and others.
Be the change you want to see on the roster
After a breakout performance in the playoffs of the 2024-25 season led to a Finals appearance, many were expecting the Haliburton-less 2025-26 season to be a perfect environment to see Nembhard break out as a two-way star.
With more touches and more responsibility, everyone simply anticipated more stats, more scoring, and more recognition.
However, while Nembhard's role increased, he didn't break out in the way anyone was hoping for. Truthfully, even with expanded opportunities, no one on the Pacers really took a leap beyond the players who were fighting to prove they deserved to be in the NBA at all, like Jalen Slawson and the aforementioned Jackson.
Maybe it's because Nembhard fits better on teams that want to be better. He is the perfect Band-Aid solution to any problem in a rotation, needing any position from point guard through small forward.
Do you need more shot creation? He's there. Defensive effort and intensity on a star guard? Yup, sign him up. What about playmaking when the team is without the sun in the Pacers solar system? There he is.
While it would've been better to avoid falling below 500, seeing Nembhard fill a team need just for a night is more impressive than beating the still-acclimating Sixers five games into the season.
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