Game planning against LeBron 'sucks' and so did Pacers defense in loss vs Lakers
267 total points. Good lord.
INDIANAPOLIS – During his pregame press conference before Pacers vs Lakers, head coach Rick Carlisle was asked what it is like preparing to play against LeBron James every single year.
"Sucks!" he said. That was it. Carlisle then praised how James keeps his body intact well into his 40s in a way basically nobody ever has in NBA history. He's still a powerful, athletic force that's tough to contain.
He was an All-Star this year. And yet, he's third on his team in minutes per game and just barely above third in usage rate. The Lakers, if you didn't know, traded for Luka Doncic last season and have Austin Reaves, a nearly 24 points per game scorer, on their roster. At its best, their offense is a supernova.
Recently, that best level has been on display often. Since the All-Star break, the Lakers are fourth in offense. James, Reaves, and Doncic have improved when it comes to their fit as a trio. And it was the Pacers job, fresh off of their first win in over a month, to stop LA despite having the league's worst defense since the All-Star break.
Tony East
The game went exactly as the numbers suggested it would. James dunked 1:58 into the action, and it put the Lakers up 10-0 in less than two minutes. That run would prove to be critical. The Pacers threw the ball all over the gym in the first quarter – they were shooting nearly 60% for much of the frame yet were down big, taking fewer shots than the Lakers were making.
Doncic was almost impossible to stop, scoring 21 points in that period. He played the full quarter and canned five two-point shots and three from deep. He's a threat from anywhere, and the amount of attention it takes to slow him down leaves other Lakers open.
At the end of that first frame, it was 45-28 Lakers. That's the second-most points the Pacers have allowed in one quarter this season. Spotting a team a 17-point lead in 12 minutes wasn't a promising follow up to the team's first win in over a month.
"It was turnovers," Carlisle said of the first quarter issues. The Pacers had seven in the first 12 minutes, then 11 the rest of the way. "This has come up a lot, the one killer quarter... It's the NBA, there's going to be tough quarters. But it can't be 45-28."
The possession battle in general was notable early. The Pacers had seven turnovers, yet the Lakers had zero. LA had three offensive rebounds, Indiana had zero. That's ten extra chances to score for the Lakers.
Like they needed more opportunities. The visitors shot 64% in the first frame and drilled six threes. The Pacers defense was, once again, porous. Doncic and Luke Kennard alone outscored the Pacers.
And, a shocking stat: The Lakers made 16 shots in the first quarter. The Pacers attempted 15. That's almost insurmountable against a mediocre offensive team, especially so against a team like the Lakers.
"Lack of ball movement," Carlisle said of the issues in that quarter. "It appeared to me that guys were trying to make things happen on their own. That's just not the kind of team we are... We've got to be a ball movement team, we've got to be a together defensive team."
The Lakers scored 30, 30, then 32 points respectively across the last three quarters. That is average for the Pacers defense of late and, given the opponent quality and first quarter failures, not so bad. But in the end, LA had 137 points, their sixth-most in a game this season. It was the fifth-highest total allowed by the Pacers, fourth-most not including overtime games.
So while the Pacers showed some improvement and had a really good offensive night themselves, they still fell. The final score was 137-130, meaning the Pacers actually outscored the Lakers 130-127 after the first two minutes of the game. But the Pacers defense early and their start to the game were so poor that they dropped another game, and it was a familiar way of losing for the now 16-57 team.
Andrew Nembhard's career passing night
The way Andrew Nembhard carried himself, even after a career performance, was telling. He had 19 assists against the Lakers, three more than he's ever had in a game before. He's got 33 across his last two performances and is up to fifth in the NBA in assists per game in the year 2026.
His passing has clearly hit another level. To me, it's the decisiveness in the lane after he creates an advantage that has been sharper. But to Nembhard, it's a continuation of his life's work as a floor general. He's always been a point guard. These are just higher numbers he's always been capable of, nothing new.
"I've always been a good passer. That's always been my thing," he said postgame. "Definitely more about my teammates making shots tonight. We shot it really well."
His confidence is earned, Nembhard has always been a good player. And he's shredded the Lakers for years, dating back to his game winner in LA as a rookie.
But I was struck by his almost nothing-to-it reaction to a 19 assist game. Only four other Pacers players (Tyrese Haliburton, Jalen Rose, Mark Jackson, and Jamaal Tinsley) have ever done that. It's quite an accomplishment, yet the Canadian viewed it as a natural part of his basketball journey at point guard.
That is a good summary of Nembhard's general mentality. He's a great player and is proving it with his production as a lead ball handler. The full group of players averaging at least 17 points and seven assists per game this season: Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Jamal Murray, Cade Cunningham, Jalen Johnson, James Harden, LeMelo Ball, Josh Giddey, Kevin Porter Jr., Trae Young, Ja Morant, and Nembhard. So nine All-Stars/former All-Stars plus Nembhard, Porter Jr, and Giddey.
Good company, in my opinion.
Tyrese Haliburton, back on the bench
For the first time since the All-Star break, Haliburton was visible on the Pacers bench. He came down with shingles during the All-Star break and was away from the team for a while, then around the team but not on the bench in more recent days.
On Wednesday, there he was. Caitlin Clark took a picture of Haliburton and his fiance Jade pregame, then he assumed his seat near Pacers coaches and was a contributing member of bench discussions throughout the night.
"He's in constant communication with a lot of us," T.J. McConnell said after the game. "His ability to bring positivity to the locker room and just to people in general, he's of the highest quality. He's an elite human being."
I asked Carlisle about Haliburton at practice today. "It's great [to have him on the bench]," he began. "You never know how long shingles is going to last. It's very uncomfortable, painful, itches, everything you could imagine. Just having him back in the building has been a great thing."
Carlisle said that Haliburton deserves credit for being upbeat, even during a challenging season like the one he is currently going through. The star guard was in basketball gear after practice on Thursday. "He's back on the court and he's been in the weight room," Carlisle said. "He's been in the gym the last three days. It's been great to see him here."
Next up for the Pacers is welcoming Bennedict Mathurin and Isaiah Jackson back to Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday. They'll try to avoid a disaster on defense or a mess of a quarter, but that's been a tall task of late.
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