Indiana

Cole Swider picked the Indiana Pacers over other opportunities, now hopes to proves he belongs

Published

3 months ago

October 5, 2024

Cole Swider picked the Indiana Pacers over other opportunities, now hopes to proves he belongs

INDIANAPOLIS — Cole Swider wasn’t sure where he would be for training camp in 2024, yet he still knew he would be in a familiar situation.

During both of Swider’s first two seasons in the NBA, he had to fight to stick around on a roster through camp. His rookie year was in Los Angeles with the Lakers, and Swider was on a two-way deal at the time. Last year with the Miami Heat, Swider was impressive during preseason action and had his Exhibit 10 contract converted to a two-way deal. He has exited training camp in a better spot than he entered it twice.

This year, Swider shared that he had a few teams that were interested in his services. Yet he chose the Indiana Pacers, and he hopes to repeat his early-practice success from past campaigns. The 25-year old has been with his new team for two months now, and he is starting to get acclimated to a new system and roster.

“Your conditioning has to be at a high level… Overall, just just getting adjusted to it,” Swider said of his adjustment to the Pacers high-paced style. That way of playing is actually what guided Swider to Indiana as opposed to another franchise — he believes he can fit in well in the up-tempo style. “It’s been great… Just learning how to play with each one of these guys, it’s going to keep on being a learning experience, but it’s been a good one.”

Swider’s high-level pitch to teams is that he’s an elite shooter. From beyond the arc, he’s lethal, and he is working on being a better shooter when moving. He plays a low-turnover style and keeps the ball moving while finishing well around the basket.

Cole Swider catch and shoot 3s: pic.twitter.com/d86gOPwaFS
— Tony East (@TonyREast) August 17, 2024

Head coach Rick Carlisle sees it the same way. “Cole’s a third-year guy who’s established himself as a specialist,” he said earlier this week. “[He’s] been a great addition. He’s a guy competing for the 15th [roster] spot. This is an opportunity.” Carlisle has already seen the 25-year old fitting in during training camp.

Prior to joining the Pacers, Swider had a few relationships with members of the team. Through his agency, he knows Jarace Walker and Kendall Brown somewhat, and he has been playing against Andrew Nembhard for years — since they were juniors in high school. He met more of his teammates throughout the summer and in the players-only minicamp held in Orlando. He’s starting to fit in well and has done work with assistant coach Jim Boylen as well as center Myles Turner after practices.

Swider, a Syracuse product, likes that he joined an established program. His entire career has been with teams in similar spots, and he’s found a way to fit in before. This isn’t much different. It’s just like his past camp experiences battling for roster spots.

“[Guys were saying] they have a solid core foundation. Rick’s been the head coach for a while

The Rhode Island native thinks his overall shooting ability will help him fit in with the team. In his view, he can replicate some of the things that Doug McDermott did for the Pacers last year as a movement shooter, though he will hope to be more accurate when letting it fly from deep. He hopes to be scrappy on the defensive end, too.

The outlook for Swider is fairly clear given his contract status. As Carlisle alluded to, he’s in the battle for the 15th roster spot. He and Kendall Brown are the obvious candidates for that slot, though in theory two-way contract players could sneak into the mix. The head coach noted that a few factors will influence who gets the final roster spot (if anybody), including general performance, compete level, how players manage game situations, and more. Someone will have to earn the final opportunity on the roster.

It could be Swider, who adds a shooting element hard to find at the back end of the team’s bench. He, and the rest of the players competing for roster spots, have been going hard in camp so far.

“I’ve been in this position every single year of my career. So this isn’t anything new,” Swider said of his battle to make the team. “Just want to continue to improve and try to earn my spot here.”

For his career, Swider has averaged 2.0 points per game. He has 25 appearances under his belt, He’s now angling to join his third team and knows exactly what it will take to be a part of the squad come opening night, and he will try to prove it across the rest of training camp and preseason play.

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Indiana

The Indiana Pacers Need Tyrese Haliburton To Find Consistency

Published

6 hours ago

January 7, 2025

Press Room

The Indiana Pacers Need Tyrese Haliburton To Find Consistency

MIAMI, FLORIDA – JANUARY 02: Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers shoots the ball during the … [+] third quarter against the Miami Heat at Kaseya Center on January 02, 2025 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Brennan Asplen/Getty Images)

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Last season, the world saw the early-season rise of Tyrese Haliburton, in which the Pacer guard averaged over 26 points, and 12 assists per game, leading his team to the number one offense in the NBA.

Unfortunately, an avalanche of injuries, including to his knee, ankle, hamstring, and back, forced Haliburton to play the majority of the season in limited fashion. His numbers, understandably so, fell to a point where fans and pundits essentially decided to wait for this season, 2024-2025, to see his full production return.

Inconsistencies

37 games into this season, however, Haliburton is nowhere near the same place as he was to start last season. His 18.4 points, 8.8 assists, and 3.7 rebounds are stil All-Star caliber numbers, but for a team that was expecting their point guard to return to his elite levels of production, it’s been a rough year.

Fortunately for the Pacers, they’re 19-18 and are winning at a decent rate, at least decent enough compete for a Top 6 playoff seed, which means avoiding the play-in tournament altogether. This, in large part, is due to the play of Pascal Siakam, Bennedict Mathurin, and Myles Turner.

Haliburton unquestionably plays a big part in their winning record, inconsistencies aside, but there seems to be a lingering feeling that the Pacers would be considerably better if he was back to form.

In seven games this season, Haliburton has failed to crack double-digit scoring. The Pacers have lost each and every one of those.

In the six games he’s scored over 30 points, they’re 5-1, and have outscored their opponents by 51 points in those five wins.

It’s not rocket science to conclude that teams tend to win more when their best player is producing at elite levels, but in the case of Indiana, it’s absurdly relevant given how one small losing streak can put them right back into play-in territory.

Deadline goals

The Pacers do have a little under a month to further upgrade its roster, which should help offset some of Haliburton’s inconsistent play.

Indiana doesn’t have a major pool of assets to toy around with, and they’re currently over the luxury tax limit by a hair over $400,000 which means they’re probably looking to also shed money to get under it.

(Historically, teams that are so close to go under the tax line make deadline moves that save them just enough to get under, so they can partake in receiving payments from the teams that do go over.)

Can the Pacers make a roster upgrade, and simultaneously get under the tax line? It’s not impossible, but they’ll have to carefully construct a deal that helps both of their endeavors, while also making sure to not waste too much of their future flexibility.

If possible, the franchise should seek out a shooter who can also rebound the ball.

The Pacers are one of the worst rebounding teams in the NBA, and while they rank seventh in three-point efficiency, they rank just 27th in attempts, and are thus in need of volume.

Those players aren’t easy to find, so they’ll have to get creative.

Hope ahead

Setting aside the trade deadline, there might be good news coming for the Pacers in regards to Haliburton.

Over his past five games, the 24-year-old has averaged 25.3 points, 9.0 assists, and 5.0 rebounds, including a 33-point, 15-assist performance against Miami.

This has been Haliburton’s best stretch of the season, and the Pacers would love to see him maintain this level of production, especially as they’re paying him over $244.6 million over the next five seasons.

Should the Pacers succeed in making a real upgrade before the deadline, and get Haliburton back to form, they could become a serious surprise team in the East by April.

Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.

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Indiana

Indiana basketball vs. USC expert prediction, start time, TV channel for 1/8/25

Published

14 hours ago

January 7, 2025

Press Room

Indiana basketball vs. USC expert prediction, start time, TV channel for 1/8/25

Indiana basketball returns home on a four-game winning streak to host USC in Big Ten action on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025.

The Hoosiers (12-3, 3-1) are coming off a victory over highly regarded Penn State in Philadelphia as Oumar Ballo carried the first half and Mackenzie Mgbako heated up early in the second half. Malik Reneau (knee) missed the game, but team officials have said they don’t expect him to be out long term. IU is the Big Ten’s best rebounding team (76.7% defensive rebounds in conference games, 1st; 37.7% offensive rebounds, 2nd).

The Trojans (9-5, 1-2) lost to Michigan over the weekend as they scored just 3 points in final 3 minutes. USC struggles rebounding (68.9% defensive, 12th; 28.6% offensive, 12th) and it doesn’t attempt many 3-pointers (5.0-of-15.7 per game, 31.9% in conference). The Trojans continue to miss Terrance Williams II, the Michigan transfer who suffered a broken wrist in December.

Want more Hoosiers coverage? Zach Osterman and Michael Niziolek keep up with IU all season. Sign up for IndyStar’s Hoosiers newsletter.

Indiana basketball prediction, pick

Zach Osterman, IndyStar: Indiana 88-81

Indiana has been playing better of late, with good, tough wins against Rutgers and Penn State. USC isn’t bad so much as finding itself, and this feels like the kind of game where a young team rises to the occasion. IU struggles but wins.

When does Indiana basketball play today?

7 p.m. ET Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana.

What channel is the IU basketball game on?

Indiana basketball odds

ESPN’s matchup predictor gives Indiana a 65.4% chance of winning.

Indiana basketball rankings vs. USC

Through Jan. 5

Indiana projected starting lineup

(with 2024-25 season averages)

USC projected starting lineup

Desmond Claude (14.9 points, 3.9 rebounds)
Chibuzo Agbo (12.8 points, 39.1% 3-pointers, 4.3 rebounds)
Josh Cohen (9.7 points)
Saint Thomas (9.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists)
Wesley Yates III (9.1 points)

Indiana basketball schedule

Jan. 2: Indiana 84, Rutgers 74

Jan. 5: Indiana 77, Penn State 71

Wed., Jan. 8: vs. USC, 7 p.m., BTN

Sat., Jan. 11: at Iowa, 8 p.m., Fox

Tues., Jan. 14: vs. Illinois, 7 p.m., Peacock

USC basketball schedule

Dec. 22: USC 82, Southern 51

Jan. 4: Michigan 85, USC 74

Wed., Jan. 8: at Indiana, 7 p.m., BTN

Sat., Jan. 11: at Illinois, noon, BTN

Tues., Jan. 14: vs. Iowa, 10:30 p.m., BTN

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Indiana

Historic Cypress Log Cabin at Indiana Dunes National Park now available for overnight stays

Published

22 hours ago

January 6, 2025

Press Room

Historic Cypress Log Cabin at Indiana Dunes National Park now available for overnight stays

ByABC7 Chicago Digital Team

Tuesday, January 7, 2025 1:06AM

Historic Cypress Log Cabin at Indiana Dunes National Park available for stays

You can now stay at the one-of-a-kind Cypress Log Cabin at Indiana Dunes that was originally built for the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair.

CHICAGO (WLS) — You can now stay at the one-of-a-kind Cypress Log Cabin at Indiana Dunes that was originally built for the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair.

At the end of the World’s Fair in 1935, the home, which is one of the famed “Century of Progress” houses, was taken to Beverly Shores, Ind., where it has stood since.

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It spent several decades as a private home, and then was restored through a program between Indiana Landmarks, the National Park Service and several private parties.

The cabin was previously only accessible to the public through limited National Park tours.

You can book a stay by visiting INtheDunes.com.

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