Subscribe
Follow Us
It was a bittersweet ending, as the Indiana Pacers lost Game 7 of the NBA Finals to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Now, the team has released their schedule, and their 2025-26 season will face many challenges. There are many Pacers predictions to make. Likewise, the Pacers' schedule will see many key games throughout the 2025-26 NBA season. The 2025-26 NBA schedule is here, and there is much to discuss.
The Pacers lost Tyrese Haliburton, likely for the 2025-26 season, after he suffered an achillies tendon injury. Then, Myles Turner signed with the Milwaukee Bucks, leaving Indiana high and dry. Because of that, it leaves a major void in the starting rotation. Many Pacers predictions see this team struggling after losing two of its biggest stars. Ultimately, this season will offer some challenges.
How will this team do after suffering two big losses? Additionally, how will they fare against the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Bucks? It's time to make some Pacers predictions about how this team will do this season.
The Pacers struggle throughout the 2025-26 NBA season
The Pacers will play the Bucks on November 3, 2025. Yes, that means Turner will return to Indiana for the first time since leaving his only team to team up with Giannis Antetokounmpo. It will be one of many games on the Pacers' schedule that will be tough for this team.
Consider the fact that Indiana went 1-3 against Milwaukee last season with Haliburton and Turner on its squad. How will they do without them? Likely, this will not go so well. The team has also gone deep into the playoffs in the past two seasons. Ultimately, that means there is a lot of wear and tear on their bodies. Without Haliburton to steer the sheep, there is a very good chance this team can take a major step back.
Indiana will start the 2025-26 NBA season against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Then, they will have a three-game road trip against the Memphis Grizzlies, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Dallas Mavericks. While the Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors might be slightly easier, nothing is an absolute.
The most taxing part of the Pacers' schedule comes in February when they have a six-game road trip. This road trip will feature a trip to Milwaukee to face the Bucks. Then, they will face the Toronto Raptors, New York Knicks, and Brooklyn Nets before ending it with back-to-back games against the Washington Wizards.
The Pacers learn to play without Tyrese Haliburton
The Pacers' schedule will be tough to navigate throughout the 2025-26 NBA season without Haliburton. However, they will manage to learn how to play without their top star. The good thing about the 2025-26 NBA schedule is it offers the team many oppprtunities to adjust as the season rolls along, and gives them a chance to develop new skills.
The current projected depth chart has a starting five that looks vastly different than last season. Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, and Isaiah Jackson likely will fill the role of the starting five. Already, this team has a major weakness at center and at the point. Can Nembhard fill the major void left by Haliburton? It will be tough sledding for the bench player to achieve, especially as he was very inconsistent.
Their luck runs out
The Pacers will eventually find a way to do well enough to compete. No, they will not be making another deep run. But the Pacers will not be a horrible team either. While the Eastern Conference has some teams that are just looking to emerge out of mediocrity, it also has a lot of teams that are still years away.
This team will go 41-41, which will be good enough for a ninth-place spot in the Eastern Conference standings. Then, they will defeat the Miami Heat in the play-in game to advance to the winner-takes-the-eighth-place spot. This will pit them against the Boston Celtics, who also lost a star player when Jayson Tatum went down in the playoffs. While the Pacers will put up a good fight, they will fall to the Celtics in the play-in game, ending a season that was doomed from the start.
Rick Carlisle will not lose his job because management will be smart enough to realize that he did not have much to work with. Instead, he will get a chance to return to the Pacers in the 2026-27 season to potentially get them back on the right track after they stumble this season. The 2025-26 season will be a struggle, but the Pacers will not go down without a fight. Despite losing Haliburton and Turner, this team will show something new, and it will make every player significantly better.
