There was one primary question that needed to be answered before anyone could realistically speak about this season for the Indiana Pacers. That question mark still exists today, and its name is Tyrese Haliburton. Haliburton is returning from an Achilles tear that he suffered in Game 7 of the NBA Finals two years ago. It had been over 400 days since he last played.
Hali broke that seal in a preseason game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, in which he was able to greet the crowd at his alma mater of Iowa State to the tune of cheers and a celebration of the return of the star point guard.
However, Haliburton is not returning to the team that he left. Myles Turner, who had been the Pacers' starting center for all of Haliburton's career in Indiana, departed for the Milwaukee Bucks last offseason. Haliburton missed all of this past season and was, as such, not a witness to the rotating cast of mediocre centers that came in the wake of Turner's departure.
Instead, Halliburton will only get to see the crown jewel of that gap year that he missed. When the Pacers traded for former Los Angeles Clippers big man Ivica Zubac, they brought in a player who was no doubt talented but had a questionable fit with the rest of their roster. Zubac's presence makes it harder for Indiana to run in transition but makes them a far better rebounding team both offensively and defensively.
Their first game together set the blueprint for how they can succeed in a tandem if they want that to keep going though they will need to both improve on things they haven't done in a very long time.
Shared goals leed to unselfish growth
For the Pacers to succeed, Ivica needs to buy into Indiana's fast-paced offense just as much as Halliburton needs to go back to his roots as a pick-and-roll playmaker.
When Zubac was on the Lakers alongside Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, and Brandon Ingram, he was more than willing to be the bulky rebounder who made excellent outlet passes. However, as he has played on an aging Clippers roster that was less and less willing to run, he was no longer asked to make those plays.
To succeed on this Pacers roster, he will need to return to that skill set and to highlight it alongside the things he already does well – dominating the defensive boards.
Conversely, Haliburton will need to go back to what he used to do with Richaun Holmes when he was on the Sacramento Kings. Holmes was a decent player but not good enough to warrant the reputation that he got alongside Haliburton. While Holmes was certainly a decent bowling ball attacking the rim, it was Haliburton's playmaking that always set him up with the momentum to get there.
If he can do the same thing with his Ivica Zubac that he did as a rookie, the Pacers are set for a strong offense.
Both players will need to sacrifice and to grow if they want this to work out. However, if they can do so, there's no reason why Indiana can't win their first championship since they were in the ABA.
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