“We had a great year. But we want more, and I think we need to be greedy.” While Bradley Beal is looking to “have fun” during the upcoming regular season and Paul George is “trying to just build habits” during the preseason, Tyrese Haliburton has laid out a different set of expectations for himself and his Indiana Pacers roster. After an abysmal 25-57 win record during the 2021-2022 season, the franchise built itself up to close on a 47-35 record during the previous tournament. This may have motivated the 24-year-old to make use of every opportunity that is expected to come his way, even if it is in the preseason. However, his plans experienced a break a couple of days ago and may experience it again for the upcoming game too.

According to the Pacers’ Injury Report highlighted by ESPN, Tyrese Haliburton continues to be listed under the ‘Day-To-Day’ status. This means that the final decision to include the player in the main lineup won’t be made public until a few hours remain in the upcoming matchup against the Charlotte Hornets.

Haliburton was present during the Pacers’ first two preseason games, during which he averaged 7.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 4 assists. When the time came to take on the Memphis Grizzlies, it was announced that the point guard/shooting guard, along with Pascal Siakam, Aaron Nesmith, and TJ McConnell, had been asked to sit out of the game. Fortunately, all four players had been excused due to ‘rest purposes,’ and not because they had developed any major injuries. While Nesmith is reportedly dealing with some ankle soreness, it has not developed into something worrisome till this point.

The Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves had earlier used the ‘rest purpose’ to excuse LeBron James and Anthony Davis, along with Anthony Edwards, from their respective preseason debut. The reason behind the same was attributed to the trio’s recent Gold Medal run at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Tyrese Haliburton was also a member of the Team USA squad, having appeared in 3 of the 6 games. According to ESPN reporter Brian Windhorst, the player was reportedly benched for half the games after he developed “a minor leg injury.” Despite this, he was not excused from the first few preseason games. Until now.

Looking to take a precautionary measure, just like 76ers head coach Nick Nurse did with Joel Embiid, Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle may have decided not to exert the player by much, and allow Haliburton to be in a better form once the regular season commences.

While Haliburton, Siakam, Nesmith, and McConnell continue to hold the ‘Day-To-Day’ status, 19-year-old rookie Johnny Furphy is declared out for the entirety of the preseason after having developed an ankle injury. While Furphy’s absence won’t affect the main lineup by much, the absence of the others certainly will.

What will the Starting Lineup and Depth Chart for the Pacers-Hornets clash look like?

With Tyrese Haliburton’s status for the upcoming Hornets matchup being unclear, the responsibility of handling the point guard position would fall upon T. J. McConnell. As highlighted above, however, the 32-year-old is also listed under a day-to-day status. Therefore, as seen during the matchup against the Grizzlies, 23-year-old rookie Tristen Newton may end up getting more playing minutes. While he only managed to make 5 points within an 18-minute span during the previous game, expectations may be upon him to perform better this time around.

Andrew Nembhard and Myles Turner are expected to be present to handle their shooting guard and center positions, respectively. With Aaron Nesmith being possibly absent, Bennedict Mathurin will step up as a small forward. Unlike Newton, Mathurin was able to perform better against the Grizzlies by scoring 12 points in 29 minutes. Pascal Siakam’s role of power forward would be fulfilled by Obi Toppin, who has been a consistent member of the Pacers rotation over the last four seasons.

In light of the recent updates, the starting lineup for the Indiana Pacers, when going up against the Charlotte Hornets, will look something like this:

The Indiana Pacers or the Charlotte Hornets? Who will you be rooting for a couple of hours from now? Let us know in the comments down below.

Before you go, remember to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr.