Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle has made clear that Andrew Nembhard will be at the center of the team’s plans as the franchise prepares for the 2025-26 NBA season. Training camp opens Tuesday, and Carlisle said the 25-year-old guard is set to take on a significantly expanded role.
Speaking on The Zach Lowe Show, Carlisle detailed how Nembhard’s versatility has already been a major asset for Indiana and how his responsibilities will grow even larger this year.
“One of our luxuries, superpowers, I guess, was that Andrew Nembhard could start as a two guard, play off the ball, be a primary ball handler as a secondary ball handler, and guard the best perimeter player,” Carlisle said. “So now, he'll be starting, he'll be the primary playmaker and probably still have the responsibility of guarding the best player from the defensive side of it. And so much will be on him. So we’ve got to alleviate pressure from him.”
Nembhard, who just completed his third NBA season, averaged 10 points, five assists, 3.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game in 2024-25. He shot 45.8% from the field and 29.1% from three-point range across 65 games while playing 28.9 minutes per contest.
Pacers, Rick Carlisle lean on Andrew Nembhard’s bigger role after Finals breakout
His production increased during Indiana’s run to the NBA Finals, where he played a pivotal role alongside star guard Tyrese Haliburton. In 23 playoff appearances, Nembhard averaged 12.5 points, 4.7 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 47.1% overall and 46.5% from beyond the arc in 33.4 minutes. His perimeter defense and ability to run the offense under pressure stood out during the Pacers’ postseason push, which ended in a seven-game loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder after Haliburton tore his Achilles in the opening minutes of Game 7.
Carlisle acknowledged that with Haliburton recovering from that injury, the Pacers will rely even more heavily on Nembhard to carry the load.
“The elements that make any team successful are going to be constant. We gotta move the ball, we gotta take care of the ball, we gotta rebound the ball, and we’ve gotta find a way to play with pace and tempo. And Tyrese is such a natural pace generator, tempo generator that as we start training camp this coming Tuesday – figuring out ways and creative ways as you suggest to do those things is going to be at the top of our list and we got a lot of work to do,” Carlisle said.
For Nembhard, the opportunity represents the most significant challenge of his young career. He has already established himself as a reliable two-way guard capable of defending top scorers while facilitating Indiana’s offense. Now, Carlisle’s remarks indicate he will be asked to shoulder the duties of both lead playmaker and defensive anchor in the backcourt.
As the Pacers look to build on last season’s Finals appearance, Nembhard’s ability to embrace this larger role could determine whether Indiana remains among the Eastern Conference’s elite.
