With seconds left in overtime and down two points, Jalen Smith went to the line with a chance to tie the game. He missed the front-end, effectively ending a sloppy but entertaining first outing for the '23-'24 Pacers.

The 127-122 loss was more or less exactly what you'd expect from the pre-season opener. It was a reminder that while the team certainly has a lot to work on, we fans also have a lot to look forward to.

Pre-season games often feature lineups that will never be used again and this game was no different. The Pacers gave Tyrese Haliburton and Daniel Theis the night off after a summer filled with FIBA games and was without Andrew Nembhard as he recovered from passing a kidney stone. As a result, the ball handling duties were split between a few likely and a few unlikely candidates. When TJ McConnell was off the court, we saw the likes of Buddy Hield, Bruce Brown, Ben Sheppard, and Isaiah Wong all take turns being the lead guard.

Speaking of weird pre-season lineups, the team closed out the game with Sheppard, Kendall Brown, Jarace Walker, Jalen Smith, and Oscar Tshiebwe playing together. If that lineup ever sees minutes in the regular season it's fair to assume that I'll be doing an ungodly amount of Tankathon in the months to follow. Even so, it was fun to see for a night and offered some glimpses of the positional flexibility that Walker, Sheppard, and Kendall Brown offer to the team.

Things I Liked

Ben Mathurin

Ever since his NBA debut, Mathurin has looked like a productive player in the league. His strength, the way he moves, his touch around the rim... he simply passes the eye test and last night was no different. Mathurin started off the game by nailing a three, something that has been a focus of his over the summer after a bit of a disappointing shooting season last year. If he can continue to shoot with confidence like he did last night (finishing 40% for the game), teams will be forced to chase him over screens and he'll find it much easier to do what he does best: barrel into the lane.

Speaking of, Mathurin also showed growth on what was one of the most frequent criticisms levied against him during his rookie year: the inability to pass out of a drive. Though he won't be confused for Tyrese Haliburton any time soon, he displayed better recognition defensive rotation and got rid of the ball when the double team came.

Nobody who follows the team, including Carlisle and Buchanan, denies the fact that if the Pacers are going to become a competitor, they need Mathurin to become a max-contract player. While it would be silly to make any proclamations after 22 minutes in a pre-season game, it appears that his legendary work ethic has him on the right track.

Ben Sheppard

I'll admit, I don't have a great feel for Sheppard yet. When we drafted him, the obvious take was that he is Buddy Hield insurance. Certainly, his offensive game is predicated on accurate shooting but claiming that he can replace Buddy Hield always felt a bit intellectually dishonest (even though I'm sure I did at some point). Buddy Hield is a generationally great shooter and while Sheppard put up good numbers in college, college shooting numbers don't always translate to the NBA (see e.g. Aaron Nesmith and Benn Mathurin).

Defensively, the report was that his tireless effort causes turnovers and generally makes up for his lack of strength and quickness. Okay, great... that works at Belmont, but in the NBA...?

While Sheppard showed flashes of promise during Summer League, I didn't necessarily come away feeling any differently about him. Last night, however, something clicked in my brain. His activity, his movement, his tirelessness – they led to winning plays. Much like TJ McConnell, I think Sheppard can parlay effort and basketball instincts into a productive career.

In his postgame press conference, Carlisle mentioned that someone asked if it's possible to play as hard as Sheppard and be a big minute player? Carlisle responded that it's all about conditioning but he loves Ben's approach to the game. He thinks he plays with energy and happiness and that makes him incredibly fun player to watch.

Based on last night, I have to agree with Coach. Hopefully we see much more of that going forward.

Jarace Walker

Walker also turned in a promising performance, flashing the plethora of tools he has to work with. He finished with a game-high 19 points to go along with nine rebounds, four assists, and four turnovers. Despite a cold start, he caught fire late in the game and finished with respectable efficiency from the floor (46.7 FG%, including 4/9 from three). His outside shooting in the fourth quarter kept the Pacers in the game and helped force overtime. The display seems to confirm reports that his elbow operation and extra-curricular work with Buddy have made a world of difference since his disappointing Summer League numbers.

What stood out as much, if not more, than his shooting was his passing... even if the reasons for standing out weren't entirely positive. Walker tried to thread many o' needle, often unsuccessfully. While it felt like he had much more than the four turnovers he's credited for in the box score, many of those passes showed good vision. It's obvious he has an innate feel for where his teammates are and where they are headed. One hopes that with a bit of seasoning he'll master the timing and judgment necessary to drop those room-service dimes.

Bruce Brown

I thought Brown was basically everything he was advertised to be. He played like your favorite glue guy's favorite glue guy. He filled in as the primary ball handler when needed, made smart rotations defensively to cover up his teammates' mistakes and the right cuts offensively. His shot wouldn't fall but it's too early in the season to harp on shooting.

I'm excited to see his contributions once the season is in full swing.

Things I Didn't Like

The Defense

The Pacers, as they have been since Nate McMillan's departure, were totally lost on defense last night. I don't know if it's simply a matter of personnel or the pace at which they play or a combination thereof, but this team seems incapable of locking opponents down.

The change in philosophy to a more traditional style of defense that employs less help has not cured any ills thus far. In fact, it looks a lot like the team's Summer League defense, which was similarly atrocious. The new ethos of self-reliance, or "guard your yard" as people around the team like to say, is particularly strained in defending the pick-and-roll.

Unlike many teams around the league, the Pacers are choosing not to send a tag-man from the corner to help stop the big from rolling. Instead they want to defend the play "2-on-2," making the two defenders involved in the action responsible for shutting it down. The idea is that the team will surrender less open three point looks and force more shots in the mid-range. In practice, the Pacers seem to end up with a guard switching onto the rolling big on most possessions, thus surrendering a post-mismatch at an unsustainable rate.

Perhaps brining Haliburton and Nembhard back into the fold will make a difference. Certainly both have the size to put up more of a fight down-low than say McConnell or Wong. However, the bigger problem is that the Pacers seem downright confused on that end of the court.

Mathurin, for all the praise I showered on him above, was truly terrible defensively last night. He was unaware, upright, and unable to get over screens. Needless to say, it was a disappointing showing for a player who's spoken a great deal about his goal of becoming one of the top two-way players in the game.

Moreover, the Pacers still don't seem to have a big outside of Myles that can hold his own defensively. Both Jalen and Isaiah appear physically stronger than they ever have, but the added muscle didn't seem to help them come up with stops. Memphis got pretty much whatever it wanted in the paint last night. I think the odds that Jarace ends the year as the team's backup five are getting shorter by the day.

Having said all of that, it was only the first pre-season game! Hopefully this paragraph becomes a freezing cold take and we can mock it later.

What's Next?

The Pacers practiced today at Jarace Walker's alma mater in preparation for their game against the Rockets tomorrow.

Once again, the game will be shown on NBA League Pass. However, next week when the team plays at home, you'll be able to watch on Bally as usual.

I'm not sure what the broadcast situation is for FanJam, which the team is treating as its fifth pre-season game. But if you're a local, you can get free tickets to the event starting at 10 AM tomorrow.

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