With Tyrese Haliburton out for the year due to an Achilles injury, all eyes are on Andrew Nembhard, who will look to replace the All-Star as the Indiana Pacers' starting point guard. However, in just one game, things suddenly took a turn for the worse.
The Canadian native played just 17 minutes against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday before exiting the game due to a sore left shoulder. Nembhard did not play at all in the second half.
Before leaving the game, Nembhard recorded four points on 0-for-5 shooting from the field, four assists, and a rebound.
Head coach Rick Carlisle did not provide any updates on Nembhard after the game, though he did say that the Gonzaga alum will undergo testing. While the severity of the 25-year-old's injury is unknown, it does not seem too promising, especially given Carlisle's post-game comments.
"This is gonna potentially present some big challenges," Carlisle said about Nembhard's injury.
It's no secret that Indiana's point guard situation was already bleak heading into the season, but with the latest Nembhard development, things just got worse.
In addition to Haliburton, the Pacers will also be without T.J. McConnell for at least a few more weeks as he recovers from a hamstring injury. Additionally, rookie Kam Jones is dealing with a back issue that sidelined him for the entire preseason, and he will be re-evaluated on Nov. 9. Quenton Jackson, who is on a two-way contract, is also out due to a hamstring injury and does not have a concrete return timetable.
How the Pacers will navigate through Andrew Nembhard's injury
It remains to be seen just how bad Nembhard's injury is. However, it is obvious that the Pacers are going to play it as safely as possible. They need him in order to be successful this season, but they can't risk making things worse by forcing things too much.
Indiana relied on Ben Sheppard and rookie Taelon Peter in Nembhard's absence. And, all things considered, they did pretty well.
Sheppard played a career-high 39 minutes against the Thunder and recorded 15 points on 5-for-11 shooting, eight rebounds, four assists, a steal, and a block. Though he is primarily a shooting guard, it was already expected that the Georgia native would play a different role to begin the season. And now, he may have even more on his plate.
As for Peter, he played roughly 17 minutes and played pretty well. His stats don't jump out too much (two points on 1-for-2 shooting, one assist, and a steal), but he played with a lot of energy and did a fantastic job of pushing the tempo when he had the ball in his hands.
Peter showed flashes in preseason and may be in line for a role in Indiana's rotation this season. If Nembhard is set to miss any time, fans should not be surprised to see the team call on the Liberty alum's number a lot more.
Hopefully for the Pacers, they will get Nembhard back on the court sooner rather than later. However, until there is more clarity, his status will be worth monitoring until Saturday's game against the Memphis Grizzlies.