Pacers GM Chad Buchanan: We want to be in position to contend for title again next year

The Pacers are not pretending.

Asked what the roster still needs now that Indiana has a new starting center, general manager Chad Buchanan gave an honest answer to respected Pacers insider Tony East of Forbes.

Specifically, Buchanan joked he’d like a top-four pick.

The joke carried meaning. Indiana is lottery-bound, and Buchanan said the final two months of the season will function as an evaluation window before bigger roster decisions arrive this summer.

“Depending on if we have the pick or don’t have the pick determines some of what we do roster-wise, what we have flexibility-wise with the cap,” Buchanan told East. “But we’re going to be aggressive to try to put ourselves in a position to compete and contend for a championship next year. And whatever that means, we’re going to try and do it.”

That aggressiveness already showed up at the deadline.

After losing Myles Turner in free agency last summer, the Pacers cycled through options at center. It never fully clicked. According to Buchanan, acquiring a veteran five became a priority, and Ivica Zubac quickly emerged as Indiana’s “number one clear target” based on fit, age, production, and character.

The Pacers could have waited until the offseason. They chose not to.

“You just never know if you wait, is the opportunity still there?” Buchanan said. “Other teams may have a need this summer and now you have more competition for a player. We wanted to be in the race, not standing on the sidelines watching.”

The price was real. Indiana sent a 2026 first-round pick with protections that could still land the Clippers a selection in the five-to-nine range.

“Ideally, you don’t have to give up anything,” Buchanan said. “But to get a good player, you’ve got to give up something too. There’s a little pain on both sides.”

For Indiana, the direction is clear. Evaluate now. Push later. And be ready when the window opens.