Rick Carlisle spent Pacers Media Day making one thing clear: Indiana’s season won’t be defined by Tyrese Haliburton alone.
That was the through line in nearly everything Carlisle said as he opened his 10th season leading the Pacers, a year after the franchise finished 19-63. Haliburton is healthy again, and that matters enormously. But Carlisle kept returning to the same idea - the Pacers are built to work as a unit, not around one rescuer.
“You don’t realize how important one player can be until you are without that player for a significant period of time," Carlisle said. "And in this case, our team is very much built as an ecosystem, with all the parts really dependent of one another.”
He tied that directly to the Pacers’ earlier playoff success, saying those teams thrived because every player understood the role he had to play.
“It’s one of the beauties of our team during the two years we had successful playoff runs, is that we’re built as a true team and we all need to function at the best possible level within the system and everybody needs to star in their role.”
That ecosystem, though, has a different look this season. One of the biggest changes comes in the middle with Ivica Zubac, whom Carlisle called “one of the top centers in the game.”
Carlisle made it clear Zubac’s game will push Indiana in a new direction.
“His game is different," Carlisle said. "He brings some different strengths to our team that are unique to how we’ve been structured in the past and there are other aspects of his that will make our thing look a little bit different."
He also praised Zubac’s basketball IQ, rebounding, physicality and passing ability around the basket. Then he got to the heart of what that means for the Pacers’ offense.
“He will create a different kind of rim pressure than we’ve had before, so we’ve re-engineered some things offensive to suit what we believe his skills are.”
Indiana also added Kelly Oubre Jr. in free agency, and Carlisle sounded just as energized about the decision-making behind that move as he did about Oubre’s fit on the floor. He pointed to Oubre choosing the Pacers as a sign of where the franchise stands.
“Getting him to choose to come to the Indiana Pacers was an important moment," Carlisle said. "There were a lit if teams after him and he chose to come to Indiana.”
For Carlisle, that meant more than just landing another wing.
“That is something that we’re proud of, and we’re in the process of building something that people are taking note of and are interested in being a part of," Carlisle said. "And again, you cannot have enough versatile wings on your team in the NBA today. He’s going to help us from day one.”
Carlisle also made time to talk about James Johnson, whose value has never depended on minutes or box-score numbers. The veteran’s influence, he said, still reaches well beyond the court.
“He’s been a force for us as a leader," Carlisle said. "He hasn’t played a whole lot of minutes, but he has an amazing locker room presence.
He’s got vast experience I’m the league. He’s been on a lot of good teams and played a lot of positions.”
Then came Carlisle’s strongest praise for Johnson’s presence in the room.
“He has presence - personality presence, a charismatic aspect that has enhanced our situation. His physical presence is something that you cannot dismiss, and just merely having here makes us tougher.”
After a five-month offseason, Carlisle sounded more than ready to get back to work. He didn’t hide how much he prefers being in the building to sitting on the sidelines.
“I don't like long summers," Carlisle said. "I like being here, I like being at work and I like the environment that we have with this organization. We’ve got a great group of players and five months for an offseason is too long.”
Still, he closed the loop the same way he started it: with Haliburton back, but not as a solo answer.
“We welcome Tyrese back with open arms but we all understand that he is not a one-man savior for our team," Carlisle said. "We have an ecosystem, and how we function together is going to define us the way our best moments defined us in '25 when we made that run to the very final game.”
That word - ecosystem - was Carlisle’s favorite of the day, and it summed up his message neatly. Haliburton returns.
Zubac changes the middle. Oubre adds another wing.
Johnson brings the edge and the voice.
But Carlisle’s point was bigger than any one addition. If Indiana gets where it wants to go, it won’t be because one player carried the load. It’ll be because the whole thing clicked again.
In Other News...
Zubac Just Gave Pacers Fans An Encouraging Read On Team Chemistry
Ivica Zubac did not spend long in Indiana after arriving from the Los Angeles Clippers at last seasons trade deadline, but the early read he offered on the Pacers still stood out. At Media Day, Zubac praised the rosters camaraderie and compared the groups feel to the Croatian National Team, a notable compliment for a team leaning into continuity and chemistry as it tries to build on last seasons momentum.
For Pacers fans, the encouraging part is not just the tone of Zubacs comments, but the role that may come with them. He is expected to have a much larger presence this season alongside Tyrese Haliburton as Indianas center, which makes his comfort level with the locker room more than a feel-good note. If the fit clicks the way Zubac suggested, it could matter quickly for a team looking to turn chemistry into results. [Read more 🡒]
Rick Carlisle Sends A Clear Message About Tyrese Haliburtons Return
Tyrese Haliburton is expected back on the floor for the Pacers this season after missing the previous year with a torn Achilles, and the early messaging from Rick Carlisle has been pretty clear about how Indiana plans to handle it. The coach is not framing Haliburton as some isolated fix for everything that went wrong last season, but as one piece of a broader system the Pacers want to lean on as they try to move forward.
That approach also suggests Indiana will be cautious at first, with Haliburtons minutes potentially limited early as the team manages his health and reintegration. For a Pacers group coming off a rough season, the return of its point guard matters a lot, but Carlisles stance hints the organization is thinking bigger than one comeback and more about building something sustainable around him. [Read more 🡒]
Ivica Zubac Just Put A New Pacers Question In Focus
Ivica Zubac is already getting a feel for what life looks like in Indiana, and the adjustment starts with pace. The veteran big man talked about fitting into the Pacers' up-tempo approach and what it means to play alongside Tyrese Haliburton, whose quick-trigger style can turn a possession around before defenses are fully set.
Haliburton's return from injury adds another layer to the season's early rhythm, because Indiana is trying to rebuild chemistry while keeping its title expectations intact. Zubac's comments point to a familiar Pacers question: how quickly can the group sync up when the offense is built around a guard who pushes tempo and starts things earlier than most big men are used to? [Read more 🡒]