How The Indiana Pacers Have Adjusted Without Chris Duarte

Early in the month of November, Chris Durate tumbled to the floor in the first quarter of a game against the Miami Heat. He rolled his left ankle landing on Heat guard Kyle Lowry and immediately exited the game.

Duarte has not played since that injury. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported that the inexperienced wing would miss four-to-six weeks with a Grade 2 ankle sprain, and it has now been about three and a half weeks since the injury. It’s possible that Duarte could return on the Pacers ongoing road trip, which runs through December 7. LaMelo Ball reportedly suffered a Grade 2 ankle sprain on October 10 during preseason play, and he returned for the Charlotte Hornets on November 12 — about a month absence in total. With a similar timeline, Duarte could be back next week.

“Guys got to be ready. New guys are going to have to step up,” point guard Tyrese Haliburton said in the days following the injury. Head coach Rick Carlisle added that Duarte was getting treatment daily.

The Pacers results have been good without Duarte, going 7-2 in the nine games since he went down. But the stats still say that Indiana could use the sweet-shooting wing, who was rounding into form just before the injury — he had a career-high 30 points in his final outing prior to rolling his ankle.

The blue and gold are most obviously missing Duarte on the defensive end. The 2021 lottery pick is one of the best, if not the singular best, wing defenders on Indiana’s roster. While Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard have stepped up in this area, Duarte is sorely missed for his abilities on the less glamorous end of the floor, and Indiana still has a better defensive rating with Duarte on the court than on the bench.

On offense, the Pacers have lost Duarte’s shooting — he’s knocked down 36.5% of his outside shots during his career despite struggling from deep to open this season. And his spacing still has a positive impact on the blue and gold — they shoot 2.5% better at the rim with Duarte on the court than on the bench. The 2022 All-Rookie team member might have been off to open the year, but he still gave the Pacers something of value on offense.

The Pacers have found ways to generate good shots and defend without Duarte, so those innovations may become even stronger when the second-year wing returns. Duarte was not himself to open the 2022-23 campaign, but he’s still a valuable piece for Indiana, and having more options on the wing is preferable to fewer. They’ve had to find ways to succeed without him.

Nembhard and Nesmith have been key for Carlisle in finding solutions without Duarte. Those two have each started at small forward since Duarte went down, and both have found a role on the team.

Nesmith has proven to be a strong defender, and his athleticism on that end of the floor makes him one of the Pacers better options to put on opposing forwards. His minutes have jumped significantly for the blue and gold in the last week or so thanks to his skillset and a few big games — he’s reached double-digit points three times since Duarte went down and had a career high 19 points just over one week ago.

“Big time, both sides of the floor. Hit big threes, guarded their best players. Was just a big difference maker for us,” Nembhard said of Nesmith after that game.

Nembhard himself has been huge for the blue and gold. His ability to fit in any lineup has boosted the Pacers, and his perimeter defense has been lauded by many on the roster. He started the first six games after Durate’s injury at the small forward spot and defended well while Indiana went 5-1. He shot 53% from deep in that span.

Those two players stepping up was a key part of the Pacers biggest adjustment with Duarte out — they figured out how to succeed with multi-guard lineups. Five-man units with three, sometimes even four, guards have been given more opportunities for the blue and gold recently, and they have hit a stride.

Lineups featuring any three of Haliburton, Nembhard, Bennedict Mathurin, Buddy Hield, and T.J. McConnell have played for 432 minutes for the Pacers this season. Prior to Duarte’s injury, that number was just 170. Those units were averaging 18.9 minutes per game in the first nine outings this season for Indiana; that number has jumped to 29.1 in the last nine games.

“I feel like it’s pretty good. We have a chance to run,” Mathurin said of those three-guard lineups. “The game is a little bit faster.”

An additional wrinkle has appeared since Duarte’s injury as the team has turned to units with four of those ball handlers. Those units have played just 57 minutes this season, but they have crushed opponents by 19 points in that span. Prior to the game Duarte’s ankle injury occurred, those groups had just ten total minutes together.

“I think those units do well,” Nembhard detailed. “I think those are the type of groups, we can come in and bring more energy. We can get it popping on the offensive side of the ball. Little more aggressive, little more athletic.”

Duarte could return soon, and if the Pacers new lineups strategies tell any story, it’s that the young wing can expect more minutes at the four spot. His shooting and defense can still be effective there so long as he isn’t going up against a post-up forward, and his finishing should stabilize after a slow start. The solutions Carlisle found without Duarte could actually benefit the 25-year old when he does return.

Of course, as a growing second year player, the biggest loss for the Pacers without Duarte is less about on-court play and more about the lost development opportunities. Giving the young wing reps and time to grow with a new-look team is more important than the team figuring out the perfect rotation in November.

But Indiana is now better equipped to put Chris Duarte in winning situations when he does return thanks to creative work with the 2021 13th overall pick sidelined. When he does return, which could be soon, he should have plenty of chances to build off of his strong final game prior to the ankle injury.