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The Indiana Pacers plan to maintain the same underdog mentality despite being one win away from returning to the Eastern Conference Finals with a 3-1 series advantage.
During a recent interview, Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle talked about his approach to preparing his players for an adversity-filled Game 5 against the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Rocket Arena later.
“We haven’t done anything yet. We were a pretty significant underdog in every game we’ve played in this series and that will continue until the end,” Carlisle said via Indy Star’s Dustin Dopirak. “We’re going to keep approaching this like we have everything to prove. We know people don’t believe in us. So we’re gonna just stay in the fight and keep fighting.”
“All things about scores and all of that is meaningless. This game is now history. We gotta stay in the present moment as much as we can. Try to maintain an edge. There’s gonna be a big haymaker coming on whatever day it is, Tuesday. That building is one of the few buildings that rivals Gainbridge for noise and fan enthusiasm and everything else,” he added.
Indiana Pacers News: Tyrese Haliburton gets 100% honest on dealing with pressure
Tyrese Haliburton recently addressed the media on dealing with the scrutiny of being one of the league’s top stars, and the Indiana Pacers star put things into proper perspective with his eye-opening answer.
“It’s just basketball, bro. I get paid a lot of money to play a child’s game. So I love what I do. I love my job. Yeah, I don’t even really look at it as a job. I have a lot of fun with what I do. And I think there’s always commentary behind what I do, positive or negative,” Haliburton said.
Haliburton didn’t need to do much in the 129-109 result last Sunday. The two-time NBA All-Star produced 11 points, five rebounds, and five assists in 26 minutes.
More must-reads:
- Celtics' moves suggest new guard will be traded — eventually
- Gap between star WR Terry McLaurin, Commanders revealed
- The 'NBA minutes leaders by season' quiz
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TODAY'S BEST
Celtics' moves suggest new guard will be traded — eventually
The Boston Celtics got under the second luxury-tax apron by trading Georges Niang to the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. The move also gives them a huge incentive to deal their most expensive new player. The Celtics have dramatically reduced their payroll in the wake of Jayson Tatum's Achilles injury. With their superstar unlikely to play in 2025-26, the Celtics traded away starters Jrue Holiday ($94.4M for three years, plus a $37.2M player option in 2027-28) and Kristaps Porzingis ($30.7M next season). They also let Luke Kornet ($2.8M) leave as a free agent, and Al Horford ($9.5M) is almost certainly gone as well. They received Georges Niang ($8.2M) in the Porzingis deal, but traded him Tuesday for undrafted R.J. Luis Jr., a rookie on a two-way deal. That effectively takes Niang's full salary from their books and gets them under the second luxury-tax apron, freeing them from the penalties and restrictions that go along with second-apron status. According to cap expert Yossi Gozlan, the Celtics have saved a whopping $286M in salary and taxes with their moves. Still, the team can reap a larger long-term reward by dropping below the luxury tax entirely, which requires reducing their payroll by just over $12M more. The Celtics don't seem inclined to trade Jaylen Brown, Derrick White or Payton Pritchard, wanting to keep some core members of their 2024 title team together for Tatum's return. Sam Hauser is on an affordable four-year, $45M deal, but losing his $10M salary wouldn't get them under the tax line. That's why Anfernee Simons, acquired in the Holiday trade, is likely not long for Boston. The 26-year-old guard makes $27.7M in the last year of his contract, making him the perfect trade piece to get Boston under the luxury tax. Not only would getting under the tax line free the Celtics of their tax obligations and save them as much as $40M, but it would make them eligible to share in the money from tax-paying teams. The Celtics would also be able to avoid the dreaded repeater tax penalties, which make every dollar over the luxury-tax number progressively more expensive every year a team stays over the tax line. This doesn't mean Simons is going to be traded this summer. Boston has until the Feb. 5 trade deadline to move Simons, since the luxury tax is calculated on the team's total payroll on the last day of the season. But given the massive savings they'd get back from losing Simons' salary, it seems inevitable. The Celtics have lost a lot of talent this summer, but they've saved a tremendous amount of money in the process. They might have to attach draft capital to get off Simons' deal, but if he plays well in Boston, he might even bring back something in a trade next season. Tatum's injury threw a huge wrench in the Celtics' plans. If they can use this season to get under the luxury tax, they'll have the flexibility to reload and contend again when their star is back in a year.
Padres already demoting one of their trade-deadline acquisitions
The Padres announced they’ve optioned JP Sears to Triple-A El Paso. They recalled reliever Sean Reynolds and will go with a nine-man bullpen in the short term. Sears will spend at least 15 days in the minors unless he’s brought up to replace a player going on the injured list. San Diego acquired Sears alongside Mason Miller in last week’s massive deadline deal. The 29-year-old southpaw made his team debut Monday night. He allowed five runs in as many innings on 10 hits and a walk against the Diamondbacks. Sears took the loss in a 6-2 defeat. He’d carried a 4.95 earned run average over 22 starts with the A’s. Monday's performance pushed his ERA to 5.12 across 116 innings. It’s a bottom-10 mark among pitchers to log at least 100 frames. Sears had the highest home run rate among that group, offsetting his nearly league-average 20.3% strikeout rate and solid 6% walk percentage. This is the first time in two-and-a-half years that Sears heads to the minors. He broke camp with the A’s in 2023 and has been in the majors since then. Sears has also avoided the injured list for that entire time. As a result, he’s tied for fifth in MLB with 87 starts since the beginning of the ’23 season. The durability is the big selling point, as his production (4.62 ERA/4.56 SIERA) over that stretch is that of a fifth or sixth starter. The demotion shouldn’t have any impact on Sears’ service trajectory. He has already surpassed the three-year mark and will qualify for arbitration next winter. He’s under team control for three seasons beyond this one. While he’ll probably be back up at some point this year, it may require an injury elsewhere in the rotation. San Diego optioned Randy Vásquez over the weekend. They have a four-man rotation of Dylan Cease, Nick Pivetta, Yu Darvish and deadline acquisition Nestor Cortes. Darvish and Cortes will get the ball for the next two outings. San Diego is off Thursday and could turn back to Pivetta and Cease on extra rest for their first two games of the weekend series against the Red Sox. That’d point to the series finale on Aug. 10 as Michael King’s return date. King threw 61 pitches in what is expected to be his final rehab start on Sunday, via the MLB.com injury tracker. He’d be on six days' rest for his first MLB appearance since he went on the injured list in late May with a nerve problem in his throwing shoulder.
Jerry Jones takes another jab at Micah Parsons over contract stalemate
The Dallas Cowboys have a big problem on their hands right now. Micah Parsons has formally requested to be traded, and he took to social media to vent his concerns and frustration with his contract extension situation. However, team owner Jerry Jones isn't ready to budge. If anything, the controversial business mogul doesn't sound too worried about that. Talking to the media, he implied that he had already shaken hands on an extension with Parsons, so he just has to wait now: "I bought the Dallas Cowboys with a handshake," Jones said, per The Athletic's Jon Machota. "It took about 30 seconds. I gave the number, shook hands, the details we worked out later." Jones, one of the most successful businessmen of his generation, pretty much stated that he wouldn't change the way he does business. "Just so you understand the way that I communicate with people that I negotiate with. Let's leave it at that," Jones continued. "There's is no question that in the case of a player contract, you have to have it in writing. All parties do. We have a contract in writing, yet we're still talking about renegotiating, so so much for that." Parsons has every right to feel frustrated. He's one of the best pass-rushers in the game, and he's the youngest in the short list of superstars at the position. The Cowboys have a long history of dragging out negotiations for as long as they can, and that's usually rubbed their players the wrong way. Parsons is still under contract, and the Cowboys can technically wait to give him an extension because the market isn't likely to go any higher after T.J. Watt already got a deal done. But sometimes, it's not just about money, and these power struggles are terrible for team morale.
NFL Hall of Famer reveals why he chose to join Deion Sanders' Colorado coaching staff
Steelers QB Skylar Thompson Makes Direct Statement About Will Howard's Injury
The Pittsburgh Steelers fan base was crushed on Tuesday when they saw rookie quarterback Will Howard go down with an injury. While Howard wasn’t expected to start in 2025 with Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph ahead of him, he had been turning heads in training camp with his poise and strong arm. Many fans were looking forward to watching him in the preseason, but those hopes were put on hold when NFL insider Ian Rapoport reported that Howard had suffered a fractured small bone in his hand, according to sources. Howard is expected to miss at least three weeks, which means he will likely miss the entire preseason. That is a tough blow to his development, especially after climbing the depth chart and passing Skylar Thompson thanks to his impressive camp performances. The reps he would have gotten in preseason games were seen as crucial for building confidence and gaining experience at the NFL level. With Howard out, Thompson suddenly has a chance to reclaim the backup role he lost. Speaking to Pittsburgh media on Wednesday, Thompson addressed the injury and the opportunity in front of him. He said he felt for Howard and wished him a speedy recovery, but also added that he is ready to compete and take full advantage of the reps coming his way. "You know, yeah, I have just been preparing this whole time as if I am the guy getting the reps," Thompson told the Pittsburgh media via video from 93.7 The Fan. "Really nothing is going to change other than me getting the reps physically now. So I am looking forward to the opportunity and getting out there to go and play football." It was a normal and direct response from Thompson. It’s a tricky spot for the veteran, who can’t be thrilled about being the fourth quarterback on the Steelers' depth chart. Thompson previously served as a backup with the Miami Dolphins and has had a handful of opportunities in the NFL. Unfortunately for him, he hasn’t capitalized on those chances the way he had hoped. Now, with a fresh opportunity in Pittsburgh, he has a real shot to climb the depth chart and claim the third-string job. Howard had been gaining momentum quickly during training camp, and there’s no question this injury, while not serious in the long term, raises concern about his progress being stalled. Missing valuable preseason reps is a blow for any rookie, especially one trying to solidify his role behind experienced quarterbacks like Rodgers and Rudolph. With Howard sidelined, Thompson will look to take full advantage of the opportunity in front of him. He knows he needs to prove he is good enough to avoid being passed over by a sixth-round rookie. For Thompson, this could be one of his last real chances to stick on an NFL roster and show he belongs. Steelers' Preseason Games Get A Lot Less Interesting Without Will Howard No one is truly banking on Thompson to be anything other than the third-string quarterback in Pittsburgh. There was some slight optimism that Howard could get off to a hot start in the preseason and show he might be worth taking a deeper look at, possibly even being the franchise savior. For a sixth-round rookie, missing valuable preseason reps is a major blow, especially with the fact that Pittsburgh will be drafting a quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft. This is adversity for Howard, but it’s nothing he’s not used to. Steelers fans are disappointed that they won’t get to watch Howard in the preseason.
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