What Indiana Pacers' roster path looks like after losing their 2026 pick
Why Pacers must now pursue win-now trades.
What Indiana Pacers' roster path looks like after losing their 2026 pick originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . The fallout from the 2026 lottery leaves the Indiana Pacers in a more constrained position than a single missed selection suggests.
Because the franchise traded both its 2026 and 2029 first-rounders in the deal that brought Ivica Zubac to Indianapolis, Evan Sidery reported on X that Indiana cannot move an unprotected first-round pick until 2031. The full picks they can legally move this summer are the 2031 and 2033 selections. That structure, combined with the lottery outcome, makes their options narrow.
A win-now trade in the coming months is now widely expected to be the front office's primary direction. Teams considering a trade with Indiana this offseason will quickly notice that the Pacers have almost nothing in the short-to-medium range to offer in terms of draft compensation. Indiana's win-now pivot depends on Haliburton returning healthy and ready next season Assuming they remain healthy and capable of competing, the Pacers' core is solid.
Tyrese Haliburton, the guard who averaged 18. 6 points and 9. 2 assists per game before tearing his Achilles in last year's Finals, is expected to return to full action next season.