Pacers must make crucial decision on their big man rotation

Too much of something is rarely a problem when it is something good. Just ask the Indiana Pacers as they courted one of the best benches in the league last season.

During the offseason, the roster has not changed drastically. Jalen Smith is now a member of the Chicago Bulls, and the Pacers inked James Wiseman on a one-year deal. The Pacers' 2023 first-round pick, Jarace Walker, also expects to see more minutes in the rotation after a strong summer league showing.

But not every current Pacers big man may be playing for the team when the NBA season starts for Indiana on the road against the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday, October 23rd. Let us take a look at your probable starters, bench players, and potential cut candidates.

The Starters: Pascal Siakam (PF) & Myles Turner (C)

It's no surprise that the Indiana Pacers will be suiting up both Siakam and Turner in the starting five. After all, both were the starters last season and the pair of big men had solid postseason performances during all three series in the playoffs.

Siakam just inked his new deal to remain with the Pacers for another four years and roughly $190 million. The former NBA Champion has won a ring with the Toronto Raptors. His experience and resume were far from lackluster when Indiana struck the swap midseason last year, sending a first-round pick and Bruce Brown up north for the talented power forward.

The eight-year veteran finished the regular season with averages of 21.7 points, 7.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists a game. Siakam also showed his range as he finished the 2023-24 season shooting 34.6% from behind the arc.

His first two playoff games with the Pacers resulted in a pair of double-doubles. Siakam secured 24 rebounds and 73 points combined in Games 1 and 2 against the Milwaukee Bucks. In his next two games, at home in Indianapolis, he was only a rebound shy in each of recording two more double-doubles.

In the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics, Siakam registered two more double-doubles in Games 1 and 4. He averaged just over 23 points and hauled in 8.5 rebounds a game during the eventual four-game sweep.

His teammate, Turner, also had two contests during the same series in which he scored at least 22 points and collected at least 10 rebounds. Aside from his shaky game in Game 2 against the New York Knicks, Turner scored at least 13 points in the other six outings of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

While averaging 17 points and seven rebounds a game during the regular season, Turner's roster status survived more trade speculation. As he could still be moved with one year left on his current deal, Turner is slated to be starting center again. This will make the tenth season as a member of the Indiana Pacers for former Texas Longhorn.