The Indiana Pacers have always been a team of their people, a franchise you visit at the arena—I’ve been lucky enough to experience that—and you see fans with friends and family who are there to enjoy their lifelong team. They’re a straightforward franchise—if that descriptor can be used in the NBA—and one rooted in a small-market mindset that has long emphasized financial prudence. Well, heading into the 2026-27 season, there’s a major change on the horizon.
According to Tony East of Forbes, at present the Pacers have 14 players under standard contracts placing their salaries at $206.3 million; that’s about $5.9 million over the luxury tax threshold. It doesn’t look crazy, but the analysis shifts when you realize they haven’t paid such a penalty since the 2004-05 season.
Why this shift? Because they believe they have a real path to winning. After making the Finals in 2025 and falling in seven games to the Oklahoma City Thunder—thanks to Tyrese Haliburton’s injury—the Pacers head into the 2026-27 season with renewed energy and the belief they can contend with the East’s top squads: Philadelphia, New York, Miami…
If that scenario materializes—the Pacers as protagonists and among the top teams on the coast—the front office has stated they’re willing to pay that tax, and even add another piece to reinforce the squad. But… what if things don’t go so well?
The Pacers’ Plan B
Reproducing what they achieved in the 2024-25 season will be very difficult. Indiana is a different team, the level of Haliburton remains to be seen, and there are rivals like the 76ers who have taken a huge step forward with the additions of Jaylen Brown and LeBron James.
Given such a scenario, in Indianapolis they are also ready to pull the trigger and trade one or more mid-range players—cases in point being Kelly Oubre Jr., Ben Sheppard, Jarace Walker or Jay Huff—to stay below the luxury tax threshold before the end of the upcoming season. As stated: the court will deliver the verdict.
