Pacers HC Rick Carlisle Provides Big Injury Update on Aaron Nesmith

The Pacers provided a major injury update to their starting small forward.

Oct 28, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) controls the ball against the Orlando Magic in the third quarter at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Indiana Pacers have had a season full of injuries this season. That started early when they lost both backup centers to a torn Achilles. Since both Isaiah Jackson and James Wiseman went down, they have had other guys go down with injuries, including two starters.

Recently, the Pacers got back Andrew Nembhard. His knee injury forced him to miss close to a month before he was back. Since he's been back, Indiana has played a lot better. They have started stacking up wins. Ben Sheppard also recently returned from his oblique injury.

One player who the Pacers are still waiting on coming back from injury is Aaron Nesmith. The small forward has been out for several weeks with an ankle sprain. It looked bad when it first happened and it clearly was severe enough for him to miss almost two months at this point.

Nesmith is Indiana's best perimeter defender, so they need him on the court badly. He's also a great three-point shooter. Getting someone like that back on the court would be a big help for a team that is trying to make up ground in the Eastern Conference standings.

Head coach Rick Carlisle recently gave an update on Nesmith. His previous updates haven't been good, as he has said that Nesmith was "several weeks away" when he was asked about him previously. Unfortunately, the most recent update isn't much more promising.

When asked about Nesmith again, Carlisle mentioned that he won't be returning any time soon.

Realized I haven't tweeted since practice. Did ask about Aaron Nesmith. Carlisle said he's making progress but nothing imminent. Definitely not playing on this trip. Wouldn't go beyond that.

— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) December 21, 2024

That isn't exactly the update that fans were hoping for. Nesmith is the last piece of this team that they need to return. Once he comes back, the Pacers will have the same team that made the Eastern Conference Finals a year ago. They need him back as soon as possible.

Until they figure out his health situation, it's hard for this team to make a move on the trade market. They value what he brings to the team with both his defense and his three-point shooting. Until they know if he's going to be back soon, it's going to be hard for them to make a trade.

If they do make a trade, there's a chance that Nesmith would be included in that trade because of his contract. His skills also make him valuable to other teams around the league as well.

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