Following their 135-127 loss to the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, the Indiana Pacers are now on a 12-game losing streak. This ties their franchise record and is also the fourth time they have been on a streak this bad (first time since the 1988-89 season).
With one more loss, the Pacers will set a franchise record...just not a positive one.
The Pacers remain one of the worst teams in the NBA
Over the course of their losing streak, the Pacers have averaged 109.3 points (second-worst in the NBA), 40.4 rebounds (second-worst), 6.7 steals (worst), 4 blocks (tied for fourth-worst), while shooting 45.3% from the field (fourth-worst), and 34.2% from beyond the arc (eighth-worst), all according to NBA.com.
With a 6-30 record, the Pacers are alone at the bottom of the NBA standings, and the numbers reflect that. Given that they were just one win away from an NBA Championship last year, this is a shocking fall from grace that nobody could've seen coming.
Everybody expected Indiana to take a step back following Tyrese Haliburton's Achilles injury and Myles Turner's departure, but nobody thought it would be this bad.
The Pacers are one of the worst teams on both sides of the ball and look like a shell of their 2024-25 selves. But that's because they kind of are.
Even beyond having to replace Haliburton and Turner, there has been a lot of role-changing in Indiana. Andrew Nembhard is now the team's starting point guard, Bennedict Mathurin has had the ball in his hands way more, and players like Jarace Walker and Isaiah Jackson have taken on much bigger responsibilities throughout the season.
On top of that, the Pacers have dealt with a ton of injuries. Currently, Obi Toppin is out with a foot injury (and may not return at all this season), Mathurin is out indefinitely with a thumb injury, and players like Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, and T.J. McConnell have all missed extensive time at some points this season.
Indiana looks like one of the worst teams in the league, and that's not likely to change this season. Haliburton isn't coming back yet, and the team is in too deep a hole to get out of. They are 10.5 games behind the No. 10 seed Atlanta Hawks, so barring some sort of miracle, a postseason appearance is not in the cards for the Pacers this year.
Not all is bad, however, as they still have a bright future. Getting their star guard back on the court will help them return to normalcy (at least within reason), and everything else should work itself back into place. Until then, though, the Pacers are likely going to keep struggling and play themselves into a great lottery spot. Though this might not be the worst thing in the world for them.