Indiana

Pacers

In recent games, there hasn’t been much separation in the playing time for starter Jay Huff and backup Micah Potter. That wasn’t the case on Friday, as Huff logged 33 minutes to Potter’s 14. Huff recorded a complete stat line in his time on the court, while Potter finished with eight points, six rebounds, three assists and one three-pointer. Playing 30-plus minutes consistently would raise Huff’s fantasy ceiling for the rest of the season, but that isn’t guaranteed.

Limited to 24 minutes in Wednesday’s blowout loss to the Clippers, Nembhard played 31 minutes against the Lakers. And the production was there, with the point guard shooting 50 percent from the field and dishing out eight assists. Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle stuck with a rotation of Nembhard and T.J. McConnell (10 points, one rebound, four assists and two steals), with Kam Jones picking up another DNP-CD.

Siakam logged 29 minutes on Friday, finishing with an excellent stat line that only lacked a blocked shot. As long as he’s close to 30 minutes, fantasy managers should not have much to worry about regarding Spicy P’s fantasy value. The Pacers play one more game in Week 19, visiting the Trail Blazers on Sunday.

Nesmith was initially probable for Friday’s game, so the upgrade in status was expected. He’ll look to put forth a better effort than he did in Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers, having scored two points on 1-of-8 shooting.

Nembhard is good to go after being listed as probable on the Pacers’ initial injury report. He was limited to 24 minutes in Wednesday’s loss to the Clippers, a game that got out of hand during the third quarter. He may be able to play a bit more if the Pacers keep things close against the Lakers.

As expected, Siamak is good to go after initially being listed as probable for Friday’s game. He logged 30 minutes in Wednesday’s blowout loss to the Clippers and should take on a similar workload against the Lakers.

Nembhard played on Wednesday following a one-game absence, and while he is still managing those injuries, he should continue to play his usual role. Expect Nembhard to be in the starting unit against Los Angeles.

Nesmith made his return to the Pacers’ lineup on Wednesday after a five-game absence, playing 20 minutes in a loss to the Clippers. The probable tag suggests that he’ll be available on Friday, but the Pacers may look to limit Nesmith’s workload.

Siakam played on Wednesday, which was his return from a three-game absence with this sprained wrist. He’s still managing the injury, but it isn’t expected to keep him on the sidelines against Los Angeles.

With Andrew Nembhard (back, neck) returning after a one-game absence, there were going to be fewer minutes available to Jones. However, his not playing at all was a bit surprising. Nembhard played 24 minutes and T.J. McConnell played 16, with Quenton Jackson getting 18 minutes off the bench. There was no room in the rotation for Jones, who has to appear in 17 of Indiana’s final 20 games to fully guarantee his contract for the 2026-27 season.