On Monday night, the Indiana Pacers will go on the road to take on the Dallas Mavericks, Rick Carlisle's former team. Heading into the game, both teams are in completely different spots in the NBA standings. While the Pacers are 2-4 and are struggling to find success on the court, the Mavericks have won three of their last four games and look like legitimate title contenders once again.
The Pacers, despite defeating the reigning champion Boston Celtics last Wednesday (and still being the only team to hand them a loss all season), do not look like the same team that made the conference finals last season. Furthermore, to make matters worse for Indiana, they are dealing with multiple major injuries.
Here is the full injury report for the Pacers and Mavericks heading into Monday night's matchup.
Pacers injury report vs. Mavericks on November 4
- Aaron Nesmith (ankle) - OUT
- Andrew Nembhard (knee) - QUESTIONABLE
- Isaiah Jackson (Achilles) - OUT
- James Wiseman (Achilles) - OUT
Mavericks injury report vs. Pacers on November 4
- Maxi Kleber (hamstring) - OUT
- Dante Exum (wrist) - OUT
The Pacers are officially going to be without Aaron Nesmith, who suffered an ankle injury during the team's loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday. It is unknown just how bad the injury is, but with him already being ruled out against Dallas, it is a bit concerning. Additionally, per Pacers beat writer Scott Agness, Nesmith's injury is "not a day-to-day thing." In his absence, the Pacers will likely rely more heavily on Ben Sheppard, who looked great in a larger role against the Pelicans.
Andrew Nembhard missed the entire game against New Orleans and nearly all of the Pacers' win against Boston last week due to a knee injury. It appears this is not a serious injury given his status, but given how many injuries the Pacers are already dealing with, it would not make any sense to rush Nembhard back. Bennedict Mathurin has looked great in Nembhard's place and should see a major role while he remains out.
Like Nesmith, backup center Isaiah Jackson suffered an injury against the Pelicans. However, his injury is far more severe. Jackson has been diagnosed with an Achilles injury that will likely sideline him for the rest of the season.
The Pacers are already without James Wiseman, also due to an Achilles injury, meaning that Myles Turner is the team's only healthy center. Indiana will likely make some moves soon to add center depth, but in the meantime, they will insert players like Obi Toppin and Enrique Freeman to play some small-ball center when Turner goes to the bench.
As for the Mavericks, they will be without Dante Exum, who is recovering from wrist surgery and will likely not return to the court until January. Additionally, Maxi Kleber, who has missed each of the Mavericks' last four games, will also miss tonight's game due to a hamstring injury.