Point guard is the new Center for Pacers roster moves
As the Pacers prepare for their preseason home opener against the OKC Thunder on Saturday, they have spent the past few days trying to fortify their depth at the point guard position.
Depth and effort are the main ingredients to the Pacers recent success and less than two weeks into preseason work, the front office is suddenly digging deep to find depth at the point guard position.
Of course, Tyrese Haliburton is out for the season, so the Pacers have been working through options to support Andrew Nembhard and TJ McConnell at point guard with a veteran option to fill in when needed.
First the reportedly signed Monte Morris, but Morris wasn’t healthy enough to begin camp, so they turned to Delon Wright. During the preseason win over Minnesota, Wright took an inadvertent, yet nasty hit to the head which knocked him out of the game. After literally stitching up Wright, the Pacers sent him on his way and sign Cam Payne for immediate help and a chance to make the roster.
This became even more vital with the diagnosis of TJ McConnell’s hamstring injury which Rick Carlisle expects will keep McConnell sidelined for at least a month. As a key cog to the depth and effort execution for the Pacers, replacing his presence won’t be easy.
Two-way stalwarts Quenton Jackson and RayJ Dennis could be elevated to the main roster, although the front office wants to maintain as much flexibility as possible at this point. The team could mix and match the 50 games both Q and RayJ can play on a two-way to fill in the third (or second) point guard role. If Payne shows up well, the Pacers can keep him at least until McConnell is healthy, again which would mean taking the place of one of the four centers, most likely Tony Bradley.
Whew.
The situation is even worse than the center shuffling the Pacers had to do last season when they suddenly lost both James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson at the start of the season. Moses Brown, Thomas Bryant, Jahlil Okafor and Tony Bradley all put in time playing reserve minutes at center. Bradley and Bryant both had big moments in the team’s postseason run in support of Myles Turner at center. But it took both of them to combine to provide defense, rebounding and shooting.
But this guard situation will create a tougher challenge to begin the season as the Pacers are already trying to adjust to life without Haliburton. Quenton Jackson is a dog at both ends of the floor and playing that third guard role seems like a perfect fit, even if it is not perfect with him remaining on a two-way.
Payne is a journeyman guard who has popped up in games against the Pacers, but always seems like a streaky shooter at best. In two games with the Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals, he made 2 of 10 threes against the Pacers. But he plays with great effort and should be able to run a reserve unit. How well he does both will determine if the Pacers want to add him to the mix, at least for the short term, or ride with what they have with Q and RayJ until TJ can return.
Ready or not, Payne will likely get plenty of run on Saturday night at the Fieldhouse when the Pacers host the defending champs.
Preseason: Pacers vs. Thunder
Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
When: Saturday, October 11, 2025 - 7:00 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, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Isaiah Jackson
Thunder: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Cason Wallace, Lu Dort, Alex Caruso, Isaiah Hartenstein
Injuries
Pacers: Ben Sheppard (undisclosed) - questionable, TJ McConnell (hammy) - out, Kam Jones (back) - out
Thunder: Chet Holmgren (should) - questionable, Jalen Williams (wrist) - out, Nikola Topic (don’t ask) - out, Kenrich Williams (knee) - out, Thomas Sorber (knee) - out