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Indiana Pacers center James Wiseman suffered a torn left Achilles in the team's opening night victory over the Detroit Pistons and will miss the remainder of the 2024-25 season, league sources told ClutchPoints on Thursday.
With 1:15 remaining in the first quarter of Wednesday night's game in Detroit, Wiseman attempted a three-point shot over Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart and appeared to tweak something in his left leg while backpedaling. He immediately struggled to put weight on that leg, and Wiseman looked behind him as if someone had kicked him in the calf or he had stepped on something.
At the next dead ball, Wiseman was helped to his feet and off the court to the bench with Pacers medical personnel. Shortly after, he was helped to the locker room, where the team ruled him out with a left calf injury. Upon further testing on Thursday, it was determined that Wiseman did tear his left Achilles, an injury that the team initially feared. The next steps in his recovery are unknown at this time.
Wiseman, 23, was the second overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors. After being traded to the Pistons during the 2022-23 season, Wiseman proved to be a serviceable big man that showed potential as a lob threat in pick-and-roll situations. As a result, the Pacers signed the young center to a two-year, $4.78 million free agent contract in the offseason. The second year of Wiseman's contract contains a $2.54 million team option.
Indiana was expecting Wiseman to hold a key role behind Myles Turner in the frontcourt, but he will now spend the remainder of the 2024-25 season rehabbing from this devastating Achilles injury. Prior to exiting Wednesday night's game, Wiseman had recorded six points and a rebound in five minutes off the bench.
Without Wiseman in their rotations, the Pacers will now turn to Isaiah Jackson to be the second-string center behind Turner in the team's nightly rotations. However, Jackson missed Indiana's season opener in Detroit due to a right groin strain, which resulted in Obi Toppin and rookie second-round pick Enrique Freeman being the team's two bench options in the frontcourt. Turner and Pascal Siakam played 36 and 32 minutes, respectively, following Wiseman's injury.
In a total of 148 NBA games with three different organizations, Wiseman has averaged 9.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while shooting 56.0 percent from the floor. The fourth-year big man now faces an uphill battle to resume his basketball career in the wake of his Achilles injury.
As team and Wiseman will evaluate treatment options, Indiana will provide further updates as appropriate.
