Pacers continue searching for a cure for the clanks
The Pacers took another disappointing loss to begin their road trip.
The Pacers took a 117-110 loss to the Nuggets to begin their current four-game roadie with a thud. Or maybe better described as with a clank.
Yet, another poor shooting night left the Pacers with no chance to rally and put themselves in position to win during winning time, instead just forced to play out the grind and move onto the Bay Area where they will play the Warriors on Sunday night.
For the game, the Pacers shot 35.5 percent from the field and 22.2 percent from behind the arc. This was the third time the Pacers have shot below 36 percent so far this season, something that hasn’t happened three times in a season since the 2014-15 season. In fact, including those three games, it has only happened 12 other times in that time. That Pacers are on pace for 27 such games…but minimizing to once a month would be an improvement.
There were moments of good for the Pacers, even if they didn’t add up to winning formula. Aaron Nesmith made 7 of his 10 shots (3 of 4 from 3-land), finished with 25 points and 4 steals while continuing for fight like hell. Of course, if you take away AA’s shooting numbers on that efficient scoring night, the rest of the Pacers had a 30.2 FG% and a 15.6% 3P%. Brings to mind the old mob comedy movie, The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight that my father used to reference after watching such games.
Oh yeah, was mentioning moments of good, may bad. Andrew Nembhard’s return to the lineup was certainly a positive. He looked pretty feisty out there and while he only made 2 of 10 3PAs, he did finish with 22 points and 6 assists. Even more important, Nembhard played over 33 minutes with no apparent issues, although he is questionable to play the back-to-back at Golden State.
The Pacers also started the game well with an early 14-10 run against a Nuggets team that sat Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray on their own back-to-back. Of course the good early vibes didn’t last long as the Nuggs finished the first quarter on a 21-4 run. The Pacers had a good run to close the first halt and get the deficit under 10 points and then had a brief run toward the end of the third quarter, but nothing sustainable as the Nuggets just let their anchor, Nikola Jokic run the game to his liking. Jokic played 31 minutes, did have 8 turnovers, but also delivered 32 points, 14 rebounds and 14 assists. The Nuggets simply had a feast in the paint where they scored 72 of their 117 points.
On to Golden State where Steph Curry is sick and questionable to play.
Pacers vs. Warriors
Where: Chase Center, San Francisco, CA
When: Sunday, November 9, 2025 - 8:30 p.m. ET
TV: FanDuel Sports Network
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers +12.5
Projected Starters
Pacers: Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Jarace Walker, Pascal Siakam, Isaiah Jackson
Warriors: Steph Curry, Moses Moody, Jimmy Butler, Jonathan Kuminga, Draymond Green
Injuries
Pacers: Andrew Nembhard (shoulder) - questionable, Taelon Peter (groin) - questionable, Quenton Jackson (hammy) - out, Johnny Furphy (ankle) - out, Obi Toppin (hammy) - out, Bennedict Mathurin (toe) - out, TJ McConnell (hammy) - out, Kam Jones (back) - out, Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles) - out
Warriors: Stephen Curry (illness) - questionable, Al Horford (foot) - questionable, De’Anthony Melton (knee) - out