Ivica Zubac didn’t need much time in Mexico City to understand the assignment. The air is different, the pace is different, and for the Indiana Pacers, Saturday’s game against the Denver Nuggets at Arena CDMX is going to ask something extra from everybody on the floor.
Zubac put it plainly after returning from a left ankle sprain Wednesday in Memphis: the altitude is real, and it’s going to be a factor. Arena CDMX sits roughly 7,350 feet above sea level, about 2,000 feet higher than Denver, where the Nuggets normally play.
“It's tough,” Zubac said. “It was already tough playing in Denver.
So this being higher is definitely going to be something that we've got to think about, something that's going to bother us. But you've got to push through it and play through it, play hard.
And that's it. You can't get around it.”
Indiana tried to get ahead of it Friday morning with a practice in the arena, and Kelly Oubre Jr. said Rick Carlisle had the team run sprints to prepare for the thin air.
The Pacers are also trying to piece themselves back together. Zubac missed five straight games after spraining his ankle in Indiana’s 136-109 win at the Brooklyn Nets on Oct. 25, then returned to the starting lineup Wednesday. He didn’t score in the 107-103 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, finishing with one point, four rebounds and two assists while missing all five of his shots.
Even so, he liked what the result meant for a group that had been stuck in a skid.
“It was good, man,” Zubac explained. “It's never easy going through losing streaks.
We wanted to get a win and we got one. No matter how the game looked, we got a win.
That's what matters, and it's a step in the right direction. So just got to keep building.
We're slowly getting guys back, so it's only going to get better from this.”
That victory snapped a five-game losing streak and pushed Indiana to 3-6. Andrew Nembhard led the way with 22 points, Pascal Siakam added 20, and six Pacers finished in double figures. Indiana also forced 19 Memphis turnovers and turned them into 24 points.
The injury list is still part of the story, though. Tyrese Haliburton stayed home for treatment on a left hamstring strain and will miss his sixth straight game Saturday. Zubac said the team wants Haliburton back as soon as possible, but only once he’s fully healed.
“[We've] got to stay together,” Zubac said. “We've got a great group of guys and coaches, and we have a system in place that no matter who plays, we're trying to play the same way.
So we're just trying to stay together, [do] the things that they want us to do, and go from there. Injuries are something that you cannot control, so you just got to play through it, and hopefully we'll get everyone back soon.”
Obi Toppin returned Wednesday after sitting out three games with a lumbar sprain. Kelly Oubre Jr. and T.J. McConnell are questionable for Saturday, while Ben Sheppard and Johnny Furphy are out.
For Zubac, the trip also comes with a personal first. He had been to Mexico before this week, but never Mexico City. He said the chance to see the city has been part of the appeal, even if the basketball side comes with a warning label.
“I love Mexican people,” Zubac said. “I spent a lot of years in LA, so I have a lot of Mexican friends over there.
And I always admire the Mexican culture. So, big fan of the country and people here.
So, looking forward for it.”
He said the Spanish he knows mostly comes from time in Los Angeles, though the words he learned there aren’t the kind he’d repeat on camera. Growing up in Europe, he was used to teams crossing borders for games, so the setting itself doesn’t rattle him.
“Just never being in Mexico City, just seeing this big city, just experiencing something new,” Zubac said. “So I'm looking forward. Today, we have a lot of free time to just kind of go in the city, see some stuff, and very excited.”
Denver is making its second trip to Mexico. The Nuggets played a preseason game against the Golden State Warriors there in 2006.
Tip-off Saturday is 5 p.m. ET on NBA TV.
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