Pacers achieve very unusual feat during win over Bulls

Apr 22, 2018; Indianapolis, IN, USA; A general view of center court before game four between the Indiana Pacers and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first round of the 2018 NBA Playoffs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

The Indiana Pacers managed to complete a side quest during Wednesday’s win over the Chicago Bulls.

In the second half of Indiana’s 129-113 victory over Chicago, they pulled off a lineup achievement that you don’t exactly see every day. The Pacers trotted out a five-man unit with the lowest combination of jersey numbers possible. Bennedict Mathurin (No. 00), Tyrese Haliburton (No. 0), Obi Toppin (No. 1), Andrew Nembhard (No. 2), and Thomas Bryant (No. 3) were all on the floor at the same time.

Indiana’s official X page made note of the unusual feat.

officially achieved the lowest possible jersey number lineup pic.twitter.com/Yo2fHzjqJQ

— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) January 9, 2025

Since the NBA only issues single- and double-zero jerseys (there is no 000), it does not get any lower than that combination of numbers. It is unclear if the feat has ever been done before throughout NBA history, but it definitely requires a unique set of circumstances. All five of those numbers have to be in circulation on the same team in the same season … and the five players have to be compatible enough to fit together in a single lineup at once.

As for more fun numbers, the Pacers are now winners of four games in a row to begin the 2025 calendar year. They have improved to 20-18 on the season (No. 6 in the Eastern Conference) and are now at the center of a much better jersey-number story than the last one that they were involved in.