INDIANAPOLIS— The Indiana Pacers hosted their annual Pacers Foundation Invitational at the Brickyard Crossing Golf Course. 

During the event, Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan and assistant general manager Ted Wu fielded questions about the upcoming season, with much of the focus centered on Tyrese Haliburton. 

The face of the Pacers franchise missed all of last season while recovering from a torn Achilles, but he enters training camp without restrictions.

“I think he’s going to be one-hundred percent full go,” Buchanan said. “We’re relying on our medical staff if there’s a day they need to scale back on him, but there’s gonna be no restrictions right away for him.”

That is music to the ears of Pacers fans: one-hundred percent full go and no restrictions.

Looking back on Haliburton's rehabilitation, Wu couldn't pinpoint one specific moment when he realized the star point guard was back. Instead, it was a gradual process.

“I wouldn’t say there was a day or a moment that happened,” Wu said. “The progress that he’s made all summer, we really trusted in the work that he put in. You can start seeing little by little his confidence picking up and building.”

It's another encouraging sign of Haliburton's progress, but Wu believes training camp will provide another important benchmark. 

“I think this week we’ve seen the best version of that,” Wu said. “There’s more progress to be made once the training camp starts. We’re excited to continue to put that faith in Ty and trust in the process with him there.” 

Since joining the Pacers in 2022, Haliburton has given this organization every reason to trust him as the player tasked with leading Indiana back toward the top of the East. 

Haliburton is the heartbeat of this Pacers team, and his absence was felt throughout last season. One year after reaching Game 7 of the NBA Finals, Indiana endured their worst season in franchise history with a 19-63 record.  

But that doesn't mean the Pacers expect everything to click from opening night. Buchanan and Wu envision a gradual build, especially as Ivica Zubac is integrated into the mix. 

“I think we’ve seen this group in the past get off to slow starts and rebound and find their groove,” Buchanan said. “Adding a different stylistic player, the one thing I think we have going for us is Tyrese is very good at figuring out his teammates, as is our coach and our coaching staff.” 

This is where Haliburton has been missed the most. 

Haliburton is an elite point guard that does a terrific job orchestrating the offense, but his value extends beyond that. He is a student of the game and of his teammates, understanding how to maximize everyone’s strengths and taking that responsibility to heart. 

Still, it will take time for everything to come together. Buchanan hopes the Pacers will have a better understanding of this group roughly a third of the way through the season. 

“You hope by 25-30 games in you start to see some signs of whether it’s clicking or it’s not,” Buchanan said. “We’re also going to be patient with this group. We’re not going to make quick determination on whether this group is fitting together or not. If we get off to a slow start after ten games, that’s just not a prudent way to approach this group.”

With a highly respected coach in Rick Carlisle at the helm and with Haliburton readjusting to the speed and physicality of NBA basketball, the front office understands patience will be necessary. It's also a position the Pacers have been in before.

“One thing that’s been an identity of Rick’s teams is they get better as the season progresses,” Buchanan said. “And that’s been the identity of this team too.”

The Pacers are eager to get back to their winning ways, but they understand it won't happen overnight. Haliburton may be healthy and unrestricted, but expecting him --and a team incorporating a new starting center-- to immediately operate at peak form would be unrealistic.

For Indiana, the early portion of the season will be about patiences, progress and putting the peices together with the hope of playing its best basketball when it matters most.

You can follow me on X @AlexGoldenNBA and listen to my daily podcast, Setting The Pace, wherever you get your podcasts.

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