Pacers quietly move on to Chicago after loss to Nuggets
A major sports spotlight will be on Indy this weekend but unlike earlier in the year, the Pacers will be nowhere near all of the excitement.
Less than six months ago, the Pacers were the focus of all attention in Central Indiana and beyond, as they made a storybook playoff run all the way to Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
Home games were events that progressively raised the excitement and activity downtown with every win. A game against the Knicks on race day created a wild day of activity, despite the frustrating end. The NBA Finals games in June at the Fieldhouse raised the electricity around the city to new levels with throngs of fired up folks enjoying the atmosphere downtown whether they were going to the game or enjoying elsewhere with like-minded fans.
The Pacers were the show.
Now, in early December, the Pacers are not even a blip on the radar as they slip out of town to play the Bulls on Friday before one of the all-time great sports weekends in Indy that will remind locals of those halcyon days in June centered around the Pacers.
Consider this slate of action around the area, starting with No. 1 Purdue hosting No. 10 Iowa State at Mackey. I’d assume Tyrese Haliburton will try to make his way to Mackey for that one. A game I was targeting when I saw it advertised a couple of weeks ago before realizing what else is going on, is Butler hosting Boise State with the legendary Leon Rice on the sidelines for the Broncos (Leon was a football legend at my high school, didn’t even play hoops, but could shoot it in pick up). Along with the great matchup at historic Hinkle Fieldhouse, the game includes Red Panda performing at halftime. C’mon!
On the high school front, Brownsburg is hosting their annual Sneakers for Santa hoops festival which includes Jeff Teague’s talented Pike team playing Louisville Male followed by the top team in the state Fishers, with elite junior point guard Jason Gardner taking on Mt. Vernon with Purdue-bound point guard, Luke Ertel.
At the same time, IU will be playing No. 6 Louisville at the Fieldhouse which will trigger a massive IU festival downtown that will culminate with the IU football team playing Ohio State for the Big Ten Championship. The madness will be unprecedented with two massive and boisterous fan bases within driving distance.
Whew!
One must be reminded that the Pacers run was mere months ago, not years as it seems while they battle through an injury-riddled season that has the dog days barking early. Enjoy the memories and keep the faith — good days will return.
The Pacers put forth a valiant effort against Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets before falling 135-120 on Wednesday, despite Jokic ‘only’ posting 24 points, 13 assists and 8 rebounds. A 22-3 run by Denver to close the half served as all of the cushion the Nuggs needed to keep the Pacers at bay the rest of the way despite some solid play the rest of the way by the home team.
While Jokic didn’t destroy them, the Pacers had to endure a Jamal Murray outing that had him playing like he did in the 2020 bubble games, complete with the blue arrow celly after making 10 of 11 three pointers of varying degrees of difficulty, en route to 52 points. Among the great shooting performances at the Fieldhouse, without a doubt.
One highlight for the Pacers was that Johnny Furphy played 16 minutes without issues as he returned from an ankle injury. Now Furph didn’t shoot the ball, but did have to mix it up with Jokic on a few switches when will help expedite his game conditioning, for sure.
So, the Paces are on to face the Bulls for the second time in a week. Ben Sheppard showed up on the injury report with a calf issue (NBA epidemic) and is not expected to play.
After winning their first five games, the Bulls are now in the midst of the SECOND five-game losing streak, which included a loss to the Pacers last Saturday. Like the Pacers, injuries have jumbled the Bulls roster over the past few weeks suddenly sinking them below .500. So, in other words, this will be the third ‘dersperate for a win’ team the Pacers will face, although the circumstances for the Bulls are far worse than the Cavs and Nuggs.
Unfortunately, this season, when the Pacers come to town, opponents are looking at a ‘get right’ opportunity which should be expected from the Bulls.
Pacers vs. Bulls
Where: United Center, Chicago, IL
When: Friday, December 5, 2025 - 8:00 p.m. ET
TV: FanDuel Sports Network
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Odds: Pacers +4.5
Projected Starters
Pacers: Andrew Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Jarace Walker, Pascal Siakam, Jay Huff
Bulls: Josh Giddey, Ayo Dosunmu, Julian Phillips, Matas Buzelis, Nikola Vucevic
Injuries
Pacers: Ben Sheppard (calf) - out, Aaron Nesmith (knee) - out, Quenton Jackson (hammy) - out, Obi Toppin (hammy) - out, Kam Jones (back) - out, Tyrese Haliburton (Achilles) - out
Bulls: Dalen Terry (calf) - probable, Patrick Williams (wrist) - probable, Zach Collins (wrist) - questionable, Ayo Dosunmu (thumb) - questionable, Coby White (calf) - questionable, Tre Jones (ankle) - doubtful, Isaac Okoro (back) - doubtful, Jalen Smith (hamstring) - doubtful, Noa Essengue (shoulder) - out, Kevin Huerter (adductor) - out