Seven things learned as Pacers start season off with win over Pelicans

NEW ORLEANS – In walked Tyrese Haliburton, not in uniform as he entered the Smoothie King Center. That was a familiar sight last season. He never changed his clothes after he arrived at arenas in 2025-26, taking his spot on the bench next to the coaches in his daily attire.

This time, with his uniform set up in his locker for photo opportunities, he grabbed it and put it in. It was time for Haliburton to play in a real game once again – his long-awaited return to consequential basketball.

That it was coming on the road and on local TV was odd to Haliburton. He was booed at first after some comments he made about this being his debut setting. But the boos ended quickly, and he settled in.

While Haliburton's debut was the story, this was the first chance to see the 2026-27 Pacers. What was learned from Pacers-Pelicans?

Circle City Spin

The Indiana Pacers and Indiana Fever, up close

Circle City SpinTony East

Tyrese Haliburton looked like himself

Early in this game, there was only one obvious sign that Haliburton hadn't played in 15 months: his wind. At the game's first stoppage, he was the first guy to make it back to the bench to sit. He needed to catch his breath.

That's natural after so much time away. What also looked natural for Haliburton: Simply playing basketball. He made it look easy during his first stint. He scored seven points (one three, plus two finishes right around the basket) and tossed three assists. The Pacers were up 25-19 when he left the game for the first time.

He returned to open the second quarter, but his impact was not as loud in stint two. Haliburton couldn't find the net and had two turnovers just in that period as the Pelicans raced ahead. His pacing felt off, and he was clearly winded.

Throughout the second half, Haliburton's passing remained sharp. He had a double-double by the end of the third quarter. But his brilliant shot making still wasn't there – the Pacers offense seemed just-okay with their star on the court to that point.

There were moments in which Haliburton looked like himself, and the guy that showed up in the preseason. There were other moments in which it looked like he hadn't played in almost 500 days – which is true outside of his three exhibition games from earlier this month.

Finally, in the fourth quarter, some athletic pop. Haliburton exploded from deep in the lane, flying toward the rim for a dunk that he threw down all over Derik Queen. His teammates leapt off the bench in excitement. It was his best moment of the game.

That play was special. And it got Haliburton going. He lived at the rim for the next few minutes as the Pacer went on a run and his scoring total approached 20. Big plays have always ignited Haliburton, and this game was no different. That was a clear sign that he was back mentally. Then, great clutch play. More to come on that.

Haliburton's final stat line: 23 points and 12 assists.

The Pacers bench struggled early

The Pacers were up seven after a strong first quarter, particularly on offense. They carried momentum into the second frame. But that's when their bench entered.

Quenton Jackson checked into the game. So did Larry Nance Jr. The Pacers had to trust Jackson with T.J. McConnell out – Carlisle opted to use Nance as the backup center.

Those two struggled. Nance forced a steal on his first pick-and-roll defensive rep but missed every shot he took in the first half and looked two steps slow. He wasn't adding value on defense. It was a poor start for the big man.

Jackson played more shooting guard next to Andrew Nembhard and didn't impact the game much on offense. He hardly put pressure on the paint and didn't make a shot in the second quarter.

With Nance and Jackson sharing the court in the first half, the Pacers were -12 in just four minutes. Ben Sheppard (three fouls) and Jarace Walker (three turnovers) were also ineffective in the first two quarters of the game.

The Pacers had to go deeper into their bench thanks to McConnell and Aaron Nesmith missing this game. It caused them problems early.

Jackson, to his credit, was excellent in the second half and played a major role in the Pacers getting back into this game. Sheppard improved as the game went on, too.

The Pacers rebounding was awful

The Pacers sure didn't look like a team that had a strong preseason on the glass. One of their biggest issues in the first half was the boards, and that trend took ages to even slightly correct itself.

At halftime, the Pelicans held a 30-15 rebounding edge. Even with the teams having roughly equal shooting percentages, New Orleans pulled in more misses and took two more shots plus eight more free throws in the first half.

The possession battle is critical, especially as the Pacers turnover number continues to feel high. In the first half, New Orleans won that battle.

Clearly, rebounding came up in the Pacers halftime chats. They were much more powerful and strong on the glass in the third quarter, particularly Ivica Zubac. The Pacers outrebounded the Pelicans nine to seven in the third frame. But they still trailed at that point because of their first-half failures on the boards.

The final margin on the glass: Pacers 42, Pelicans 49.

Three-point shots weren't falling

The Pacers were fourth in the NBA in effective field goal percentage in 2024-25. They ranked first in 2023-24. They've been a terrific shot making team during their best moments in the last two successful seasons.

In this game, they were not. Through three quarters, the Pacers were 8/27 from deep. Only Obi Toppin and Haliburton had knocked down more than one outside shot at that moment. Kelly Oubre, Nembhard, and a few others were struggling.

Even as the Pacers made improvements to their turnovers and rebounding, they struggled to mount a comeback as they missed jump shot after jump shot.

Final accuracy from three-point range: 9/30.

Pascal Siakam struggled at the foul line

For all of the things Pascal Siakam has done well – and consistently – with the Pacers, free throw shooting has never been one. And he started 3/8 from the charity stripe in this game.

The Pacers were trailing for much of the second half. They needed the easy points that Siakam was leaving on the table.

A scuffle fuels the Pacers

Queen and Haliburton were going back and forth after Haliburton's aforementioned dunk, and that created tension. Dejounte Murray kept being around both players. There was a lot of extra talking.

And it bled into a small scuffle, of sorts, in the middle of the fourth quarter.

Haliburton received a technical foul during that sequence, and the Pelicans went up 102-100 after the extra free throw. Then, an 8-2 run from the Pacers – who often surge after extracurriculars. This time, it put them in the lead entering crunch time.

Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton owned crunch time

With the Pacers down for much of this game, they needed their stars to deliver in the clutch.

Boy did they. In the final five minutes of this game, Siakam and Haliburton were at their best. Siakam checked in after his typical mid-fourth quarter rest and couldn't miss. Haliburton found his way into two tough floaters much later in the fourth quarter.

During the final five minutes of this game, those two players combined for 13 of the Pacers 15 points. That guided the team to a 123-120 win. The Pacers are 1-0.

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