Pacers back home after a big loss to Suns on scoreboard and via injury...again
Aaron Nesmith will be out for awhile after suffering a sprained knee in the third quarter.
The Pacers wrapped up their road trip by getting routed by the Suns, 133-98 as frustrations mount for the severely short-handed Pacers. Here’s a recap delivered in one video and one image.
The video clip captures the Pacers as they begin falling behind late in the first quarter after a solid start and holding a 21-20 lead with 3:44 left in the first quarter. Ben Sheppard rushed an extra pass to Pascal Siakam in the corner and just bounced it off his knee leaving Siakam visibly frustrated. The Pacers would fall behind by 10 points in a hurry, and Siakam would go on to mix it up with Dillon Brooks and Royce O’Neale during the game seemingly hunting for an outlet to his general frustration.
Speaking of frustration, after the Pacers fell apart in the second half, including failing to score 1 (one) point for nearly six minutes to begin the fourth quarter, the Fan Duel Sports Network feed went out leaving views with the Technical Difficulties screen while Chris Denari called the game through his phone. Yet another Siakam signature ‘It’s almost laughable, but it’s not funny’ situation for the Pacers.
So the Pacers return to the Fieldhouse where they will face the Raptors on Saturday night after a road trip that just got progressively worse by the day. Aaron Nesmith sprained his knee in the third quarter against the Suns which was all of the good news the Pacers could muster since the injury wasn’t more severe despite the odd nature of the injury.
The Pacers have now lost six consecutive games starting with a two point loss to the Bucks and a nine point loss to the Nets at the Fieldhouse. Then on the road a seven point loss to Nuggets, an 11-point loss to Golden State, a 24-point loss to Utah and a 35-point loss to the Suns. Oh, and Denver, Utah and Phoenix were all playing on back-to-back situations.
The Pacers will host a Raptors team that has been quite feisty of late while winning 6 of their last 7 games with a relatively healthy roster and an extremely healthy roster compared to the Pacers.
While Tankathon traffic has started to spike in Indiana, the struggles without being able to play Benn Mathurin, Johnny Furphy while Ben Sheppard and Jarace Walker struggle trying to fill a role neither is ready for at this point continues to make the situation exasperating. The only benefit thus far is knowing Shep and Walker aren’t ready for more, which stinks. However, there will be no shortage of reps for both to see if the can take a step or two in the right directions.
Pacers vs. Raptors
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
When: Saturday, November 15, 2025 - 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: FanDuel Sports Network
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers +6.5
Projected Starters
Pacers: Andrew Nembhard, Ben Sheppard, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Pascal Siakam, Tony Bradley
Raptors: Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett, Brandon Ingram, Scottie Barnes, Jakob Poeltl
Injuries
Pacers: Aaron Nesmith (knee) - out, Cody Martin (illness) - out, Quenton Jackson (hammy) - out, Johnny Furphy (ankle) - out, Obi Toppin (hammy) - out, Bennedict Mathurin (toe) - out, Kam Jones (back) - out, Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles) - out
Raptors: Ochai Agbaji (back) - questionable, Collin Murray-Boyles (illness) - questionable