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Pacers aim for continued improvement vs. Hawks

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NBA: Chicago Bulls at Indiana PacersJan 28, 2026; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) shoots the ball while Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) defends in the second half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

The Indiana Pacers have won just 12 of their first 48 games, but every so often they offer glimpses of the team that reached the NBA finals last season.

The injury-plagued Pacers look to build on an encouraging victory when they face the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday in Indianapolis.

Indiana rallied for a 113-110 home win over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, while Atlanta had its four-game winning streak snapped in a 104-86 home loss to the Houston Rockets on Thursday.

Pascal Siakam scored 20 points and Andrew Nembhard added 18 in the Pacers’ win over Chicago. Indiana trailed by 14 points with 7:14 left in the contest before storming back to win for the second time in its last three games.

Siakam has scored at least 20 points in eight straight games for the Pacers, who have used a league-high 25 different starting lineup combinations this season.

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The team’s lengthy injury list includes point guard Tyrese Haliburton, who is out for the season with an Achilles tear suffered in last season’s Game 7 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals.

“We understand that we’re in a different place and a different position,” Siakam said. “But I just feel like no matter all the adversity that we’ve been through and everything that’s happened, we just have to keep it going.

“We can’t think about our record. We can’t think about anything. We just have to keep focusing on how we can improve and not lose our identity, who we are. No matter who is out there, we have an identity, and that’s gotta stick.”

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Indiana is looking to avoid a season sweep after losing its first two meetings against Atlanta. The Hawks posted a 128-108 road victory on Oct. 31 before winning 132-116 at home on Jan. 26.

Atlanta will be without center Onyeka Okongwu for the second straight game after the center suffered a dental fracture in Wednesday’s win over the Boston Celtics.

The Hawks are also monitoring the status of leading scorer Jalen Johnson, who sat out Thursday’s game against Houston with left calf tightness. He is listed as questionable.

With both Okongwu and Johnson sidelined against the Rockets, Atlanta faded in the second half and trailed by as many as 22 in the fourth quarter.

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“Not having Jalen and ‘O’ is substantial,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “Their ability to create advantages is something that we rely on defensively. That said, when we did get into the paint, we were trying to challenge.”

CJ McCollum scored 23 points to lead Atlanta in the loss. Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 20 and Corey Kispert had 17. McCollum has scored at least 20 points in three of his last four games.

Christian Koloko started in place of Okongwu and recorded six points, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block in nearly 26 minutes.

After averaging 120.8 points and 17.3 3-pointers during their four-game winning streak, the Hawks were held to 36.6% shooting and 12 3-pointers in the loss to Houston.

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“(The Rockets) are an excellent defensive team, but I think there were some things that we’ve been doing that we didn’t do,” Snyder said.

–Field Level Media

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NFL fans react to Micah Parsons filming female cheerleaders at Pro Bowl

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Miach Parsons was named to the Pro Bowl in his first year with the Green Bay Packers. Although the superstar defensive end was in San Francisco to attend the Pro Bowl festivities on Tuesday, he was on an electric scooter while moving around Moscone Center due to his knee injury. In one of the videos from the festivities that went viral on social media, Parsons was spotted filming the female cheerleaders doing a routine for the crowd.

When fans caught wind of the video clip in which Parsons was filming the cheerleaders while on an electric scooter, they slammed the Packers star.

“Creep behavior,” one tweeted.

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“Nfl star or creep in training,” another added.

“He not slick,” a third commented.

Here are a few more reactions.

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“NAH THIS IS MESSED TF UP,” one wrote.

“Kinda hate that this streamer a*s dude is a packer now. Like bruh… get us to the nfc championship mr highest paid ever,” another added.

“Tell that lame a*s podcaster to show up in the playoffs. Don’t nobody care bout Micah,” a user tweeted.

Micah Parsons finished the 2025 season with 41 tackles, 12.5 sacks, 6.5 stuffs, two forced fumbles and one pass defended. However, he suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 15 against the Denver Broncos.

Although Parsons helped the Packers qualify for the playoffs, his team was eliminated in the wildcard round with a 31-27 loss to the Chicago Bears.

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Micah Parsons explains how his relationship with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones soured last offseason

Green Bay Packers DE Micah Parsons - Source: GettyGreen Bay Packers DE Micah Parsons - Source: Getty
Green Bay Packers DE Micah Parsons – Source: Getty

Micah Parsons’ relationship with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones soured last offseason, which led to the team trading the DE to the Packers in August. On Tuesday, Parsons opened up his acrimonious split with the Cowboys.

“I just wish some of those things never happened. You know what I mean?,” Parsons told Clarence Hill of All City DLLS Cowboys. “I wish that he never brought me into the office and just let the agent speak. And I wish he hadn’t compromised our relationship. I thought me and Jerry had a good relationship up to that point until this offseason, and it’s sad that it went to sh*t like that.”

Parsons played four years with the Cowboys, earning a Pro Bowl selection in each season. He signed a 4-year, $188 million extension with the Packers after the Cowboys traded him last year.