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Pascal Siakam hosting and motivating Indiana Pacers teammates for minicamp in Orlando

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Pascal Siakam hosting and motivating Indiana Pacers teammates for minicamp in Orlando


Pascal Siakam is nearing the end of his first full offseason with the Indiana Pacers, and he’s flashing his off-court value. The two-time All-Star, who was traded to Indiana back in January, is hosting his teammates for a mini camp in Orlando ahead of the 2024-25 season.

Indiana’s head coach Rick Carlisle spoke about the minicamp on 107.5 The Fan Tuesday morning. He said that 18 or 19 players are participating, and the event is being held essentially at Siakam’s home. Earlier in the offseason, the two-time All-NBA forward posted a few videos training with younger Pacers players. This time, more of the roster is together.

Last year, the team went to Nashville, Tennessee for a minicamp ahead of the season. They discussed their goals for the campaign and what it would take to get there, and they relied on the veteran leadership of 2023 NBA Champion Bruce Brown to prepare for the coming campaign.

This year, it’s Siakam taking on a leadership role — fittingly, a player that Brown was traded for. “The fact that we have more continuity is great. It’s a players only retreat in Orlando,” Carlisle said. The head coach shared that Siakam has a separate building by his house with a court that can be used for training. “It is a beautiful facility,” Carlisle said.

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He then detailed that there’s a strength training area at the facility and that it could host a real NBA training camp if need be. The players organized this trip on their own — it’s a players-only camp, Indiana’s coaches are also doing their coaching meetings ahead of the coming campaign.

Siakam took on a leadership role in the postseason for the Pacers last year. He wanted to lead by example. In the past, he won a title and has earned individual accolades. He’s been where the rest of the Pacers want to be, and he’s powered through low points in his career.

He’s also fallen short after tremendous seasons. The Raptors haven’t made it back to the conference finals after winning the Finals in 2019. Siakam and his team wanted more, but it never happened. He knows what it takes to get back to high highs, and he’s sharing that wisdom with the Pacers.

“We can’t go into [the season] thinking ‘Oh, we did so well last year. We got to the Eastern Conference Finals, and we’re going to be back at it’. It doesn’t work like that,” Siakam told his teammates, per a video he posted on his Twitter feed. “Have the mindset from the beginning that whatever we did last year, we’re going to have to do that sh*t triple to even get to where we were at last year. Just continue to f**king build on that.”

Siakam noted that the Pacers still have to hunt. They can’t be the hunted even after a lengthy playoff run. He doesn’t want his team to get comfortable.

Their quest to do what they did last season starts in Orlando. The team was seen together at a WWE event Tuesday night as they continue to bond, an important part of the minicamp experience. They’ll eat as a group and learn more about each other — especially the new guys in James Wiseman, Cole Swider, and the 2024 draft class.

Siakam recalled getting somewhat complacent after a title with the Raptors and thinking the team would get back to that high peak at some point. It didn’t happen. Now, he’s worked hard to be a talented enough player that can help guide a team to postseason series wins. He wants the Pacers to get there again, and if they do, it will have all started at this minicamp in Orlando.





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Indiana State Police: Beer spilled all over I-65 northbound in Indianapolis during semi crash

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Indiana State Police: Beer spilled all over I-65 northbound in Indianapolis during semi crash


INDIANAPOLIS — Beer was spilled all over Interstate 65 northbound on the south side of Indianapolis late Sunday afternoon.

The beer was spilled when a semi and an SUV became involved in a crash near mile marker 109, which is located near the area where I-65 and Raymond Street converge.

Photo of the crash scene captured by an INDOT camera.

The Indiana Department of Transportation sent a notification about the crash around 4:52 p.m. That notification indicated that all lanes of the interstate had been closed in the aftermath of the crash.

Indiana State Police confirmed that troopers found objects scattered all over the road when they arrived at the scene. They later determined that those objects were beer cans.

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INDOT sent a maintenance crew to the scene to help police get the interstate cleaned up. ISP confirmed that medics also responded to the crash scene, though they did not transport any of the individuals involved in the crash.

I-65 northbound was closed at mile marker 109 until about 6:04 p.m., according to INDOT. That means the roadway was closed for a little over an hour as crews worked to clean up the crash scene.

ISP diverted traffic off of I-65 and onto Raymond Street while troopers cleaned up and investigated the crash. The cause of the crash is currently unknown.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

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Sunny Sunday ahead of warming for Christmas in central Indiana

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Sunny Sunday ahead of warming for Christmas in central Indiana


Following the 4th above average day so far this December Saturday, a cold front passed through and dropped our temperatures. However, its passage didn’t drop temperatures too dramatically!

In the picture above, the clouds in the distance are the clouds along the cold front. They are exiting our region and can be seen 70 miles away! Sunday is to be the day with normal temperatures around here! Expect readings in the upper 30s to near 40° across central Indiana. High pressure settles in giving us the widespread sunshine. Don’t get used to it because our skies will look a lot more like December this week.

While this week does come with mostly cloudy to overcast skies each day, it won’t feel like how late December should feel. A few rain chances exist for late Monday then Christmas Eve Wednesday. Otherwise, expect daily warming with Indianapolis surpassing 50° by Tuesday.

The peak of the warmth will be Christmas Day Thursday! Our forecast high for Indianapolis is 61°. Should that verify, it would be the fourth time within the last six years a top-10 warm Christmas Day would occur. 61° is just three degrees shy of the 129-year-old record high of 64°. I don’t think we’ll get there since the clouds will be around. But, 60° is attainable given the breezy southwest winds forecast.

Following Christmas, Friday looks dry but we’re seeing indications of a post-holiday front sometime next weekend. Otherwise, the polar air will stay north for 2025’s final days. I don’t think we’ll be as warm for New Year’s compared to Christmas. Nonetheless, no big cold snaps (or snow) in the near term.



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Indiana takes on Boston, aims to end 4-game skid

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Indiana takes on Boston, aims to end 4-game skid


Indiana Pacers (6-22, 14th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Boston Celtics (17-11, third in the Eastern Conference)

Boston; Monday, 7:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Indiana comes into the matchup against Boston after losing four straight games.

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The Celtics have gone 13-8 against Eastern Conference opponents. Boston is the leader in the Eastern Conference in team defense, allowing 110.5 points while holding opponents to 44.7% shooting.

The Pacers are 4-12 against Eastern Conference opponents. Indiana is the worst team in the NBA recording just 23.5 assists per game led by Andrew Nembhard averaging 6.4.

The Celtics average 15.7 made 3-pointers per game this season, 4.1 more made shots on average than the 11.6 per game the Pacers give up. The Pacers are shooting 43.1% from the field, 1.6% lower than the 44.7% the Celtics’ opponents have shot this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jaylen Brown is averaging 29.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and five assists for the Celtics. Derrick White is averaging 4.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

Pascal Siakam is averaging 23.8 points, 6.7 rebounds and four assists for the Pacers. Johnny Furphy is averaging 18 points over the past 10 games.

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LAST 10 GAMES: Celtics: 7-3, averaging 119.5 points, 42.9 rebounds, 23.2 assists, 8.5 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 49.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 111.0 points per game.

Pacers: 4-6, averaging 111.3 points, 42.5 rebounds, 23.9 assists, 7.8 steals and 6.6 blocks per game while shooting 46.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.2 points.

INJURIES: Celtics: Ron Harper Jr.: day to day (knee), Jayson Tatum: out (achilles), Jaylen Brown: day to day (illness).

Pacers: Obi Toppin: out (foot), Ben Sheppard: day to day (calf), Aaron Nesmith: out (knee), Tyrese Haliburton: out for season (achilles).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.



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