The player who will replace Tyrese Haliburton in the starting lineup of the Indiana Pacers

Former lottery pick Bennedict Mathurin has alternated between starting and coming off the bench in his first three seasons in the NBA with the Indiana Pacers, accumulating 85 starts in 209 games. However, with Tyrese Haliburton ruled out for the 2025/26 season due to an Achilles tendon injury, the expectation for this fall is that the Canadian will be the full-time starting shooting guard.

Indiana coach, Rick Carlisle, confirmed this to Caitlin Cooper of Basketball, She Wrote. “I'm breaking news right here: I project him as our starting shooting guard this year,” Carlisle said about Mathurin. “I told him. I had a phone conversation with him and his agent four days ago and I said, ‘You’re going to be a starter from day one. It’s your spot to lose’.”

Selected 6th overall in the 2022 draft from Arizona, Mathurin impressed as a rookie with his scoring ability, averaging 16.7 points per game and receiving votes for both Rookie of the Year and Sixth Man of the 2022/23 season. The 1.96m shooting guard missed part of his second year due to a shoulder injury but returned this past season to average 16.1 points per night with a career-best 45.8% field goal shooting.

Carlisle praised Mathurin's ability to draw fouls and his scoring instinct, although he also pointed out that other aspects of his game such as passing, quick decision-making, or adapting to the Pacers system, are areas to develop. “Our job as coaches is to integrate players like him, who don't naturally fit our style, into a dynamic that works for the rest of the team, and bring both sides closer over time,” explained the coach.

The step Mathurin has to take

Carlisle had previously commented in March on the coaching staff's efforts to integrate Mathurin's more individualistic and one-on-one oriented style into the ball movement-based offensive system led by Haliburton. Now, with Haliburton unavailable for the entire season, Mathurin will take on more offensive responsibilities and could have more freedom to create his own shots.

It will be interesting to see how Mathurin's increased role will impact contract negotiations between his camp and the franchise. The Canadian will be eligible to sign a rookie scale extension until October 20th. However, reaching a long-term agreement could be challenging, given the inconsistency in his role so far and the possibility of him having his best season in 2025/26.

Mathurin is set to earn around $9.2 million in the final year of his rookie deal. If he doesn’t reach an agreement with the Pacers before the season starts, he could receive a qualifying offer of nearly $12.3 million next summer, provided he meets the starter criteria.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, El jugador que sustituirá a Tyrese Haliburton en el quinteto titular de los Indiana Pacers