New Defense

The "new" defense has been a major topic of conversation during the first three days of camp. While the players and the coaches don't want to give away too much away about the changes, the fundamental shift seems to be a move away from relying on help defense in favor of more one-on-one defending.

According to Bruce Brown, it's a more "reactive" defense than he's played in the past, requiring a knowledge of personnel to make reads.

The team has been holding a daily one-on-one tournament to get players to take more pride in stopping the guy in front of them. The results of the tournament are shrouded in a bit of mystery but so far we know Mathurin and Toppin have made it to the finals.

Jarace Gravitates Towards Buddy

According to both players, Jarace has started showing up early to work with Buddy Hield before practice. Apparently the extra work is paying off as Walker "rang the bell" during Thursday's practice, meaning he made at least 20 out of 25 threes in the around-the-world shooting drill.

Mathurin Growth

According to Carlisle, Benn is getting better at keeping his composure when calls don't go his way.

Team Canada Begged for Nembhard

When asked about Nembhard's role for the upcoming season, Carlisle offered a lot of praise and few specifics. However, he did drop a nugget that I hadn't heard previously. Apparently, Team Canada pushed to get Nembhard to play for King and Country this summer but he declined in order to focus on skill development.

Injuries

TJ McConnell is back in action after missing time with an ankle injury. However, Nembhard, who was getting more on-ball reps during McConnell's absence, missed Thursday's practice with a sore neck.

Turner's Block

What's Next?

The Pacers have Friday off before traveling to Memphis on Saturday. They'll play their first preseason game of the year against the Grizzlies on Sunday at 8:00 PM EDT.

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