Pacers Injury Report: Bennedict Mathurin Shockingly Ruled Out For Game vs Heat

The Indiana Pacers have been getting a great season from Bennedict Mathurin this season. He has been putting up the best numbers of his career so far.

Mathurin has been moved back to the bench since Aaron Nesmith is now fully healthy. That allows Mathurin to be the primary scorer with that unit.

The Pacers are taking on the Miami Heat on Friday night. Unfortunately, they will have to do so without Mathurin on the court.

Mathurin was added to the injury report on Friday morning, being listed as questionable due to a left wrist sprain. It was a surprising addition to the injury report.

Now, Mathurin has shockingly been downgraded to out because of the injury.

Bennedict Mathurin has been added to the @Pacers injury report. OUT (left wrist sprain)
— Jeremiah Johnson (@PacersJJ) February 28, 2025

With Mathurin out for this game, that will mean Jarace Walker will likely get the backup forward minutes. He had fallen out of the rotation since Nesmith came back from his ankle sprain.

It's unclear how long this injury will keep Mathurin out for.

Mathurin is one of the engines that drives the bench. He is one of the few guys who can get to the free-throw line at will.

With Walker out there, the bench unit will likely play a little bit better defense than they normally would. While Walker is not as good of an offensive player as Mathurin, he is excellent at getting deflections and steals.

The Pacers feel comfortable putting Walker out there. He was playing some of the best basketball of his career before Nesmith came back from his injury.

Indiana has had to deal with a lot of injuries this season. They are hoping that this wrist injury won’t keep Mathurin out for multiple games.

They also would rather suffer these injuries now than they would in the playoffs. As long as they are fully healthy in mid-April, they feel good about their team.

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Mathurin is one of the leaders for the Sixth Man of the Year Award if he’s able to stay healthy for the rest of the season. He has to play in more games off the bench than he starts, so he still needs more games to qualify for that award.

So far this season, Mathurin is averaging 16.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game.

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