Pacers kick off summer league practices hoping to push the pace | Chatting with Smith and Slawson
The summer Pacers have started to practice.
INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Pacers are back in action – well, at least the summer league version of the team. Their first practice was on Friday, featuring rookie Braden Smith plus 2025-26 two-way players Taelon Peter and Jalen Slawson.
It's a group of familiar faces with several Noblesville Boom players and a few returning Pacers. That sets up some competition and brings together a group looking to prove themselves. Johnny Carpenter, a Pacers assistant hired last summer, is guiding the roster as the head coach.
"I actually thought overall the whole group brought great energy," Carpenter said after the team's first practice. "They were positive, they put themselves in new situations, they learned well, they took criticism well. I thought that was great."
Tony East
Carpenter is getting valuable experience as the head coach of the summer group. It's a chance for him to grow as a leader, and an opportunity for other Pacers staffers to develop as they get a bigger role on the summer league bench.
While they will primarily focus on playing the Pacers style – that benefits anyone who ends up staying with the organization at any level – there will be some tweaks, Carpenter explained. He likened it to the art of preparing a meal.
"I think in life and in coaching... there's bakers and there's chefs. Bakers follow the exact blueprint, right?" Carpenter said. "The wonderful thing about this organization is that they allow us to be creative and we can be chefs, not bakers. Obviously, incorporate the same ingredients. But we can add our own flair, if that makes sense."
Just as summer league can be an opportunity to develop players, it can be the same for coaches. Jannero Pargo and Isaac Yacob earned that opportunity during the prior two seasons and are better for it. Carpenter has since talked with both coaches, connecting with Pargo to learn what worked for him on the offensive end and chatting with Yacob about practice planning. It's been a collaborative effort.
Carpenter, as a baker, will have the Pacers playing how he sees fit in Las Vegas. The only certainty: The pace that makes the Pacers who they are will be there. The mentality, Carpenter explained, is speed kills – and the Haliburton-era Pacers always play with pace.
"That's the mentality that Braden [Smith], (Yuki Kawamura), a lot of the guards have adopted, and a lot of the guards and bigs are able to get down the court quickly with pace and kick ahead passes. So that's been fun to see," Carpenter said.
Most of the experience on the summer Pacers roster comes at the guard positions, which will help when it comes to implementing styles. Yet one guard who will be a major focus has zero experience in Smith, and he detailed his first few days with the team on Friday.
Braden Smith talks being drafted, first few days of summer mini-camp
Braden Smith's draft-night situation was unique.
At about the time the 33rd pick was being made, he found out that he would be drafted 38th overall. The event moves fast. Teams are making moves in an instant. And Smith, with a few minutes to spare, got the call that he was about to be selected.
The Chicago Bulls held the 38th pick at the time. But Smith was informed he would not be going to Chicago – they were going to trade him elsewhere.
"It was between three teams. So I didn't really know until it said the pick was in. And then I got a text before it happened, and it said Bulls, and then it said traded," Smith recalled. "So then I had maybe like a minute in advance notice, so I didn't know really until the end."
Moments later, he learned it was his hometown Pacers. "It was awesome. Just being home, around family, my friends. Obviously, I went to college an hour away from here, so being close to that. I have a younger brother, being close to him and being able to help him out in his next four years of high school," Smith said. "And obviously be a part of an organization similar to how [I see] Purdue is. Great culture, great community, great people in the organization and great players. So for me, it's just like I'm coming from one great organization to another one."
During his early conversations with Carpenter, Smith learned that he was going to be in charge of leading a team that's going to play fast – they hope to lead all summer league squads in pace. Smith's comparison was a Michigan State team he played against in college that played an up-tempo style. But now, he's the one on Michigan State.
"For us, just going constantly quick up and down, trying to get as quick from one side to the other just to run offense," he said. "And for me, like, it's fun. I get to use my speed, get to play in space, and then get guys in positions to also play in space and do the same thing."
Slawson has felt Smith's toughness and willingness to face challenges in their two practices together. The rookie's intangibles have stood out to many others, too, and he'll need them to have a long career in the NBA.
Especially as a point guard, and especially at his size. Smith made it clear at his pre-draft workout that he knows his limitations but has overcome them at every level so far. Next up is the NBA, and his first chance to do so will be during summer league.
And that will be with the Pacers after they were the team that ultimately acquired him on draft night.
Jalen Slawson talks re-signing with Pacers and the two-way battle
Slawson was given a qualifying offer from the Pacers on the unofficial first day of free agency. That means he's a restricted free agent, and he has at least a chance to earn one of the Pacers final two-way contract spots.
Currently, Taelon Peter and Ethan Thompson (who is playing for Puerto Rico instead of for the Pacers summer league team) are signed to two-way deals. NBA teams can have three players signed to such contracts, and the current plan is for Smith to get one.
Those three, plus Slawson, would give the Pacers four players competing for three slots – though really it's three competing for two since Smith is a near-lock to get a two-way deal. Since two-way pacts can be waived without much penalty at any moment, it doesn't mean much that Peter and Thompson are currently under contract.
Slawson averaged 7.3 points and 4.4 rebounds per game down the stretch, appearing in 13 games for the Pacers after a call up from the G League. It meant a lot to him that the Pacers wanted him back, especially after the opportunities they gave him last season.
He grew quite a bit with the Boom, something Slawson attributes to a system fit. Now, he feels more confident in general and is more comfortable making quick reads – a must with the Pacers.
But he's still going to have to earn a two-way deal. I asked him about that dynamic. "I don't think we look at it as competition. [Thompson], [Peter], [Smith], we're all really close. We understand that it's a business, and we know that the front office here has to make decisions just like everywhere else," he said. "Obviously, everybody's hungry and everybody wants this spot. But I don't think if you look at it as a competition like that, that it can always be healthy."
Last year, Slawson played his summer league with the Philadelphia 76ers but struggled with his efficiency. He will hope for a better showing this time, and playing in a system that helped him bloom last year will help.
Thank you for reading. Two more summer league practices coming for the Pacers next week with stories to follow. Sign up to have them emailed directly to you.
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