What to Know About the Indiana Pacers' 2026-27 Schedule

The Pacers will open the season in New Orleans, and then LeBron James visits early

Jan 12, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) celebrates with forward Jarace Walker (5) and forward Pascal Siakam (43) after a basket during the second half against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Ever since game seven of the 2025 NBA Finals concluded, Indiana Pacer fans have been thinking about opening night in 2026. The wait is almost over, and now fans can officially circle their calendar with a date, and an opponent.

The Pacers will kick off their 2026-2027 season on the road against New Orleans on Wednesday, October 21st.

I know a lot of fans wanted a big time match-up for the opener, but a softer launch will probably be a good thing for this team. Let them shake some rust off and get their legs under them before some of the rivalry match-ups start up.

After the first game in New Orleans, the Pacers will kick off their home portion of the schedule against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday, October 23rd. It is sure to be an electric night with the expected home return of Tyrese Haliburton.

Earlier this week, the NBA Cup dates were announced, and the Pacers are in a very strong group. Though it will be tough to make it out of this grouping, this will make for some highly entertaining games on the schedule. The Pacers will play in Miami on Friday, October 30th.

The following Friday does not include an NBA Cup contest, but the next three Fridays in November do. They'll host New York on November 13th, play in Cleveland on the 20th, and then host LeBron James and the Sixers on the 27th. That final game is of particular interest against the new-look Sixers, as it will be part of the Pacers' annual Black Friday game tradition.

The dates and times you need to know for the @nba Cup 🏆

Single Game tickets go on sale September 16: https://t.co/GJoEyyP70c pic.twitter.com/WSJnApGxQr

— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) August 12, 2026

Another tradition for the Pacers is hosting a game on the afternoon of New Year's Eve. This time around, the Orlando Magic will come to Indy for the occasion at 3 PM.

Whenever the full schedule drops, it's always a good idea to look at the back-to-back situation for each team. This season, the Pacers will play in 14 back-to-backs, which is near the average amount for each team.

Other key dates for the schedule include Haliburton's return to Oklahoma City on February 5th, and an international game as they host the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, November 7 in Mexico City, Mexico. The Pacers will also host LeBron and Philadelphia in their second home game on the schedule, and will have four home-stands this season of four or more games. A five game trip out West in December will present one of the biggest challenges of the season.

pic.twitter.com/Ocvqq3Nbfo

— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) August 13, 2026

No surprise here, but the Pacers will not be playing on Christmas Day. Overall, they have very little prime time games scheduled, but that can always change a bit as they get into the season. That number currently stands at 11, with nine such games appearing on Peacock or Amazon Prime.

The early predictions on the Pacers range from 4th place to barely being a play-in team in the Eastern Conference. This team will be ready to attack this schedule and prove many of the doubters wrong once again.