The Indiana Pacers left their 19-win gap year in 2025-26 with only one price. While they had once hoped to bring in a star rookie in a great class alongside Croatian big man Ivica Zubac, a draft lottery fall doomed that dream to a barbershop argument instead of reality.
With so much now riding on the trade for the star center, it's hard to overstate just how good he needs to look this offseason for fans to feel more comfortable with just how much went into getting Zu.
And a 24-point, 11-rebound, two-block performance to lead Croatia over the Netherlands is certainly a very, very good start to a season that will be so telling for this era of Indiana Pacers basketball.
Now, the truth remains that the trade was an absolute masterclass, even with the loss of Keaton Wagler or whoever Indiana would've taken at fifth overall. Bennedict Mathurin will be facing the Pacers to open the season as a new member of the New Orleans Pelicans, and Isaiah Jackson is not expected to factor into the rotation.
It's not a hot take to say that Zubac will be the best player of that group for the next five or more years. Wagler had a rough summer league and lacks the athleticism to handle NBA defenses. Mathurin is now on his third team in eight months.
Safe to say, Indiana has won this trade even if Zubac hasn't played double-digit games in a Pacers jersey yet. Especially considering just how aggressive teams were in acquiring center talent this offseason (seriously, why did the LA Lakers give up so much for Walker Kessler), Indiana struck gold early.
However, Indiana isn't just looking to win a trade, they're looking to win a title.
Zubac is a huge part of that formula.
The Croatian basktball ecosystem
Making the FIBA World Cup is hard. Far harder than American athletes have made it seem with their talent monopoly offering them a cakewalk to qualification.
Despite what many other international stars need to do, Zubac does not dominate his team's box score and shot attempts. Instead, he functions much as he does in the NBA: as a rebounder and post scorer.
It's nice that Zubac will not have to adjust to a new role as he returns to a system that will likely keep the ball out of his hands in hopes of highlighting the team's other stars, most notably a returning Tyrese Haliburton.
Zubac's 24 points came on 8/10 shooting, through baby hooks and pick-and-roll finishing. While Dario Saric is no longer the player he once was, his play is oddly just a little reminiscent of Pascal Siakam. A point forward with underappreciated scoring skill, the two are certainly not of the same caliber, but of the same mind.
Ivica has spent years playing alongside Saric. If this is a taste of what he can do with Siakam, the Pacers are in good hands.
The front court pairing the Pacers boast is likely the best in the league, rivaling Joel Embiid and LeBron James of the Philadelphia 76ers.
The season truly can't start soon enough.
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