Mavs at Pacers Preview: A Rick Carlisle Visit; Odds, How To Watch

The Dallas Mavs are on the road on Friday and face an old friend who is coaching the Indiana Pacers.

Yes, it's Rick Carlisle, who coached the Dallas Mavericks for 13 seasons (2008-2021), and led the Mavs to a NBA title in 2011.

Wanna pine for the Mavs good ol' days? This is your moment.

Anyway ...

The 2026-27 Pacers are at Gainbridge Fieldhouse for their home opener against Cooper Flagg and the Mavs, who lost in a blowout in Game 1 at Houston on Wednesday and who play their home-opener on Saturday against the powerhouse Spurs.

So this is quite a basketball sandwich.

For Indy, Tyrese Haliburton has returned after a year and four months of rehab, and he helped the Pacers beat the Pelicans in their opener.

"Tyrese played extremely well,” stated Carlisle. “He made huge plays throughout the game, but particularly down the stretch...That kind of competitive presence, leadership, and belief is just something that just bleeds out to everyone. It's huge to have him back."

The Mavs also have a star guard coming back from injury in Kyrie Irving, who scored 15 points in the loss at Houston.

But Dallas' centerpiece guy is reigning Rookie of the Year, Cooper Flagg, who scored 32 in Game 1.

Flagg averaged 21 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in 70 games last year but Dallas finish the season with a 26-56 win-loss record.

Right now, Dallas' prospects of piling up more wins than that seem iffy. The Mavericks are underdogs on Friday and on Saturday, so an 0-3 start is staring them right in the face.

Probable Starters

Pacers: G - Tyrese Haliburton, G - Andrew Nembhard, F - Kelly Oubre Jr., F - Pascal Siakam, C - Ivica Zubac

Mavericks: G - Kyrie Irving, G - Max Christie, F - Cooper Flagg, F - P.J. Washington, C - Daniel Gafford

Who: The Dallas Mavericks (0-1) at the Indiana Pacers (1-0)

Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday, October 23, 2026.

When: The game starts at 6 p.m. CT on KFAA, and MavsTV and 105.3 The Fan radio

Odds: The Pacers, who are 40-49 against the Mavericks all-time, are favored by 5.5 points.