The combination of the No. 1 pick and the No. 2 pick is amazing! The Spurs defeated the Pacers with 16 points. In this battle, I completely recognized these five players.

Edit|Old Kankanqiu

On October 14, the NBA 2025-26 preseason ushered in a focus battle. The San Antonio Spurs went to Indiana to challenge the Pacers away. What is surprising is that Harper, the Spurs' second pick this summer, performed amazingly in the first game against the Jazz. He scored 9 points and 3 assists in only 18 minutes, with a plus-minus value of +20, the highest on the team. The most important thing is that when he is combined with Wenban Yama, his compatibility is very good, and he is very experienced in running tactics on the court. The Spurs really picked a treasure.

As for the Pacers, although they overcame all obstacles and reached the finals last season, they missed the championship and at the same time starting point guard Haliburton was injured for the season. It can be said that 'time comes, life comes'. This summer they simply gave up on reinforcements and lost starting center Turner. It is expected that the new season may start directly, and the championship team will fall to the Eastern Conference and compete for lottery picks.

In terms of the starting lineup for today's game, the Spurs' starting five are: Vunbanyama, Castle, Champany, Vassell, and Barnes; the Pacers' starting lineup is: Siakam, Marceline, Nembhard, Nesmith, and Isaiah Jackson.

At the beginning of the first quarter, Wenbanyama made consecutive mistakes and lost the ball. Barnes and Castle were also intercepted one after another. The Spurs team was out of shape and made 4 turnovers at the beginning. On the other hand, opponent Marceline hit two consecutive three-pointers, and the Pacers led the Spurs 8-2. After Champany stole Jackson, Wenbanyama counterattacked and quickly caught the ball to score 2+1, stopping the bleeding in time. Then he faced the defense and made a mid-range jumper. The Spurs responded with a 7-0 lead. Jackson once again took out the ball for Wenbanyama, Marceline received the ball and also scored 2+1, returning the favor. In less than four minutes, Wenbanyama had already made three mistakes. Then the two sides launched a three-point battle, hitting 6 consecutive three-pointers, and the score increased alternately. Tyrone Peter hit another three-pointer at the buzzer. At the end of the first quarter, the Pacers trailed the Spurs by 4 points 30-34.

Returning in the second quarter, Siakam took the lead and kicked off the offense with a signature turnaround jumper. He also succeeded in a fadeaway jumper from a negative angle and a chasing three-pointer. One player scored 7 points in a row. Wembanyamari also responded with a sudden outside shot. Castle caught the ball in a wide open space and hit three-pointers one after another. The Spurs took a double-digit lead. Marceline counterattacked and dunked one after another, and Obi Toppin also hit a three-pointer using the pick-and-roll. The Pacers responded with a 7-0 wave to narrow the point difference to 3 points. After Wenban hit Jackson with the ball, he jumped up and staged a brutal shark dunk. Marceline hit a three-pointer at the buzzer from far away. At the end of the half, the Spurs led the Pacers by 3 points, 69-66.

Halftime data, for the Spurs, Bunyama played 14 minutes, made 7 of 8 shots, 2 of 2 three-pointers, scored 19 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 1 block, U.S. The disadvantage is that 6 turnovers are a bit too much, with a plus-minus value of +8; Castle played 13 minutes and scored 13 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals on 5-of-9 shooting; Dylan Harper played 13 minutes, scored 6 points and 4 assists on 3-of-5 shooting.

For the Pacers, sharpshooter Marcelin played 16 minutes, making 9 of 9 shots, 4 of 4 three-pointers, and scored 27 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, and 1 steal. His explosive state was perfect.

Change sides and fight again. After Wenbanyama protected the backcourt rebound, he went from his own penalty area to the enemy's penalty area and succeeded in a layup. He only needed 4 dribbles in total. He is simply a genius. Johnson broke through and scored 2+1, and Cornet also scored a tip-in. After three quarters, the Spurs still led by 9 points. In the fourth quarter of the decisive battle, both sides changed to substitute lineups. The Spurs always suppressed the Pacers. In the end, the Spurs defeated the Pacers 124-108.

In this battle, I completely recognized these five players.

The first one is Bunyama of the Spurs. He scored 27 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and 1 block on 9-of-13 shooting. He is definitely the cornerstone of the Spurs team. He is one pace a year and his talent is amazing. The second player is Castle, who contributed 14 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. The rookie has such a sophisticated style of play in his second year and is a sure-fire future superstar. The third player this year is Di. Len Harper scored 11 points, 8 assists and 2 steals on 4 of 8 shots. Even though his statistics were mediocre, he played really steadily and smartly on the court, both on offense and defense. His breakthroughs were smooth and comfortable. I can’t believe this was the rookie’s second preseason game. The fourth player was Cornet, who scored 16 points, 7 rebounds and 1 steal on all 6 shots. He played very smoothly with Dylan Harper and cooperated with the tactics. The two can be used together for a long time.

The fourth one is Marcelin from the Pacers. He made 11 of 12 shots, 4 of 4 three-pointers, and 5 of 5 free throws. He scored 31 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal. He started to explode in the playoffs last year. He is a marksman worthy of attention in the new season.

Other player data, Spurs: Keldon 14 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 steals, Champany 12 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals, Bryant 8 points and 1 rebound, Barnes 4 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists;

Pacers: Siakam 17 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, Walker 12 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals, Nembhard 11 points, 2 rebounds and 8 assists, Payne 10 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists, Nesmith 9 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist, Toppin 6 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists.