The reigning Eastern Conference champions, the Indiana Pacers, have secured their future by agreeing to a contract extension with one of their brightest stars from the previous campaign.
The Pacers had a dream in the 2024-25 season where the Tyrese Haliburton-led unit made the charge towards the NBA Finals. They went toe-to-toe with the Oklahoma City Thunder but failed to secure the maiden NBA title in franchise history.
In the 2025-26 NBA campaign, the franchise will be without its leading man, who has been sidelined for the entire season due to an Achilles injury. Without their star man, the team will look to the other starters who performed consistently well last season. One of those tireless forwards has just secured a multi-year contract extension.
Which Indiana Pacers Star Has Secured a Contract Extension?
In his latest report on social media, senior ESPN NBA analyst Shams Charania revealed that the Pacers have signed small forward Aaron Nesmith to a two-year, $40.4 million contract extension. The agreement will keep the 26-year-old with the franchise through the 2028-29 campaign.
In his post on X, Charania wrote, “Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith has agreed to a two-year, $40.4 million contract extension with the franchise through the 2028-29 season, plus a trade kicker, agent Mike Lindeman of Excel Sports Management tells ESPN. Pacers give Nesmith the max allowed salary via extension.”
Furthermore, the analyst shared another social media post on X, highlighting some of Nesmith’s positive and intriguing stats. Charania mentioned, “The Pacers lock in one of their best defenders after a playoff run in which Nesmith started all 23 games on the run to the Finals — and shot 49.2% on 3-pointers, the best by any player in a single postseason with at least 100 3s attempted in NBA history, per ESPN Research.”
Nesmith was highly influential in the franchise’s run to the finals for the first time in over two decades. As Charania mentioned, he started all the playoff games leading to the finals, which is a testament to his physical strength. He is an incredible three-point shooter who can make turnovers and defend the home bucket diligently.
#Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith is now under contract through the 2028-29 season. https://t.co/7095IFsMZw
— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) October 21, 2025
Head coach Rick Carlisle was happy with Nesmith’s contract extension and praised the player, saying, “He’s a guy any team in the league would love to have.”
The Pacers finished their preseason campaign with two wins and two losses. They will kick-start their journey in the new campaign against the Thunder in last year’s NBA Finals rematch at home in Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Thursday night.
