Pacers' Rick Carlisle Offers Blunt Statement About Upcoming Tough Stretch of Games

The Pacers have some hard games coming up on their schedule. Rick Carlisle isn't letting that phase his team.

Dec 19, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle against the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Indiana Pacers have had a roller coaster start to their 2024-25 season. Injuries have been a big storyline for this team. The depth that this team prides itself on took a big hit early in the year after they lost two centers to season-ending injuries in the first few games.

Despite that, the NBA doesn't rest for teams who have injuries. The Pacers have had to soldier on. Now that they are finally starting to get healthier, they are starting to play some better basketball. They have won four of their last five games, including one on the road in Phoenix.

The road game at Phoenix is just one of the tough games that Indiana has in the next few games. They have eight more games against teams with a .500 record or better. They haven't played their best against good teams, only sporting a 7-11 record against teams over .500.

Rick Carlisle knows that his team has a brutal stretch of games that they are going through right now. Yet, he knows this is a good chance to see what his team is made of. After the 120-111 victory over the Suns, he acknowledged that kind of effort is going to be needed in all of these games.

"That's what it's gonna take," Carlisle said, "in all these games down the stretch of this month." The Pacers don't even get the friendly confines of Gainbridge Fieldhouse to help them in this brutal stretch of the season. Five of their next seven games are on the road, with their only home games coming against the two NBA Cup Finalist teams, the Bucks and the Thunder.

The Pacers just need to be able to survive this stretch. There's a shot they might have a more positive update on Aaron Nesmith's availability at the end of this brutal stretch. Getting him back would drastically improve this team's defense and its three-point shooting.

Indiana sits at eight in the East right now, but it's a volatile conference. The Pacers can either rise very quickly or fall very quickly. They are already 1-0 in their tough nine-game stretch after the win against the suns. If they finish 4-4 the rest of the way, they will be very happy.

The schedule softens a bit following this nine-game run. That's when they can start to make some progress in the standings.

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