As NBA fans, we often find ourselves getting carried away by certain things. Whether it be an off-the-cuff remark by a player, a circumstantial change by a coach, or even an ill-advised shot attempt or sequence during a game, overreaction is the name of the game. However, what happens when the thing you are getting carried away by doesn’t count?

Such is the case in the NBA preseason. After all, how often have you had to remind yourself not to overreact to certain lineups, player decisions, and displays of effort because of the preseason? We, as fans, are so excited for the NBA to return that, come early October, we are just itching for something to hold onto. The offseason brought on plenty of changes for many teams, and for the Pacers, while those changes may be minuscule in terms of roster construction, fans are still more than excited to get their takes off and check up on how their favorite players are doing.

While the Pacers made a few changes in the offseason, their main goal was to seek growth from within and improve the team chemistry that took them to the 2024 Eastern Conference Finals. With Tyrese Haliburton recovering from his hamstring injuries and getting some experience with Team USA during the Olympics, Pascal Siakam taking up a new hobby of photography and vlogging, Bennedict Mathurin returning from a shoulder injury, and youngsters Andrew Nembhard and Obi Toppin re-signing for the long run, continuity seems to be the name of the game for the basketball team in Indianapolis.

Jarace Walker’s growth is critical to the Pacers reaching new heights as he transitions to small forward.

He’s getting positive reviews from teammates and coaches through camp and preseason so far.

read: https://t.co/Lc9r5AlDoY pic.twitter.com/fMdZhH8jWH

— iPacers.com (@iPacersblog) October 14, 2024

Sure enough, that team chemistry and synergy shone through in Indiana’s second preseason game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Pacers played 13 players on Thursday night, and while the starters and Mathurin played less than 20 minutes each, that was more than enough time to get satisfactory results. It helps that many of this game’s negatives can be chalked up to preseason woes, such as a lack of energy and hustle, especially on defense. Unlike the many positives, these can be taken with a grain of salt.

For one, Bennedict Mathurin looked reborn. After hitting a crossroads following Indiana’s trade for Pascal Siakam and a shoulder injury which caused him to miss the rest of the season, during which Indiana made the Conference Finals, many see the 2024-25 campaign as a make-or-break year for Mathurin. If that is the case, his performance against Cleveland is something to get excited about. Leading the team with 19 minutes played, Mathurin was on fire all night, recording a game-high 25 points (14 in the third quarter) on 8/12 shooting, 5/8 from deep, and a perfect 4/4 from the free throw line.

Moreover, it was how he got these buckets that really caught fans’ attention. Seemingly returning to the confidence that enamored fans during his rookie year, Mathurin found no issue getting his shot, whether driving to the basket through contact, fading over a defender, or pulling up from deep with a hand in his face. Moments like Mathurin’s 25-point bonanza are certainly things you can take away from the preseason and hope for in the regular season, as he has shown Pacers fans what he can do with the ball time and time again.

Another performance that fans can be hopeful of is James Wiseman. After being tossed aside by Golden State and Detroit and almost ending up out of the league at the tender age of 23, Wiseman was given a second wind in the league by perhaps the easiest basketball setting to make a living in. As Indiana’s first legit seven-footer since Roy Hibbert, Wiseman was given a rotation spot and asked to do two things: rebound, block shots, and run the floor.

Sure enough, Wiseman did all that and then some in his 10 minutes and change on the floor against Cleveland. Playing with a fire in his heart, like he had something to prove for the first time since he entered the league, Wiseman finished with a solid eight points and 10 rebounds (game-high) on 4/6 from the field. Moreover, he displayed what scouts and fans said he lacked in his Golden State and Detroit stints: effort, hustle, and a desire to make the right play. In a relatively relaxed preseason environment where many players understandably take plays off and wait for their moments, Wiseman went out of his way to clean up misses, run the floor, and make life challenging for the Cleveland big men. Despite there being no real stakes in this matchup, Wiseman played like every possession could be his last in the league because that was a legitimate possibility a few months ago.

Despite the preseason not even being over yet, with two more games on the mid-October schedule before the season officially tips off on October 23, fans have a legitimate reason to get excited so far. The performances of Bennedict Mathurin and James Wiseman give the Pacers faithful hope for a few new layers to be added to last year’s near-Eastern Conference Champions. During the ill-fated series against Boston last season, Indiana severely lacked a tertiary shot creator down the stretch, especially in Games 3 and 4, where Tyrese Haliburton did not participate due to injury. While Andrew Nembhard put up a decent fight against the juggernaut Celtics, he was not enough to carry a beaten-down Pacers team to even one win as they were swept on their home floor. With Mathurin on the floor for that series, there is a chance an extra layer of shot creation could have catapulted the Pacers to a few wins and a possible series turnaround. Now, with Number 00 healthy and seemingly back to his old self, the sky is the limit for how far this rejuvenated core can go.

As for Wiseman, if he can provide some solid backup minutes under Myles Turner and give the team the rebounding and defensive push they need down the stretch, he will be an excellent addition for the money and earn himself a second wind in the NBA. After all, he is only 23 years old and seemingly has his best years of basketball ahead of him. The Pacers desperately needed help on the boards after last season, losing plenty of games to second-chance points and not boxing out. Perhaps number 13 can be exactly who they need coming off the bench.

As stated before, overreactions are plentiful in the preseason, and assumptions should not be made. However, suppose we will take two positives from Thursday night’s matchup against Cleveland. In that case, the Pacers may have added two new weapons to their rotation to strengthen last season’s Eastern Conference Finals core.