est.1999
Starter
That was an all time great defense and they almost went back to back.
[NBA] The 2025 Finals
- Thread starter Mr. S£im Citrus
- Start date
Joshyjosh31
Starter
If Caruso stays on his feet would you still think it’s a flagrant?
ShastaKingsFan
All-Star
and nobody picked them to beat the Lakers or whoever had won the west that year
QWERTYLICIOUS
Starter
Yes.
Joshyjosh31
Starter
Dort, Joe, and Caruso shot 8-9 from three and Indiana had three starters in single digits scorering
Au contraire - I'm enjoying this - the series likely going the full 7 now. Swept? I dunno,.......they're entertaining, and its fun to cheer the underdog.
QWERTYLICIOUS
Starter
I remember telling all of my basketball buddies (and family members) that, if the Lakers were to win that year, they would do it in 4 or 5 games, but if the series extended to 6 or 7, it would heavily favor the Pistons because of their defense.
I was glad to see the Pistons prove me wrong.
That was a VERY satisfying dispatch of a series.
QWERTYLICIOUS
Starter
That may have been the most satisfying thing I've ever watched in the National Basketball Association.
PurpleHaze
All-Star
OKC has nice supporting cast to back up their one true star, SGA (or superstar if you like) but Indy has more depth, more overall talent it seems. Besides amazing floor general Haliburton, the experience of Siakam and Turner and the duo of the two N's plus when needed explosiveness of Mathurin off the bench provides the recipe to "upset" OKC. Pacers having head coach who has been there and done that also an advantage.
kingsboi
Hall of Famer
this is what parity looks like. Pacers are playing way over their head right now. If they pull this off, this is Pistons over Lakers type of upset. I kept disrespecting them all season calling them non-contenders and to get swept and here they are, continuing to shove it all back in my face.
Yep. Pacers have no business, on paper, hanging with OKC. Yet, thats what #sports are played. You dont win a series on paper.
They definitely got a "team of destiny" thing going on this post season run. I think OKC still wins, but its been fun to see them have like a 2010 Giants esq run this postseason
sactowndog
All-Star
If you don’t have the trust of your manager to do your job it’s a problem regardless.
sactowndog
All-Star
Chet looks afraid to shoot. That could be a problem for OKC.
And Mathurin.
This series is showcasing some ferocious defense on both sides. The refs let em play by the time we get to the Finals. Lots of bumps by offensive players. Intense rebounding and a fast pace. It is great basketball. Look closer if you can't see the greatness.
Indiana plays fast and is plenty deep. Winning the second and fourth quarters is not a joke. It is the key to winning two more games. The defense on SGA was really good. He still got his points but did not control the game like he usually does. Halliburton rose up just like he was supposed to do. McConnell and Mathurin ignited the Pacers coming off the bench. They could start for almost any team in the league. Mathurin has unusual athletic skills. Caruso gets some great minutes off the bench too.
It is really good to see some new teams in the Finals. Parity is real. Good for the League and good for the sport.
Indiana plays fast and is plenty deep. Winning the second and fourth quarters is not a joke. It is the key to winning two more games. The defense on SGA was really good. He still got his points but did not control the game like he usually does. Halliburton rose up just like he was supposed to do. McConnell and Mathurin ignited the Pacers coming off the bench. They could start for almost any team in the league. Mathurin has unusual athletic skills. Caruso gets some great minutes off the bench too.
It is really good to see some new teams in the Finals. Parity is real. Good for the League and good for the sport.
Padrino
All-Star
Yep. The Pacers keep playing like they believe they can win. Some of it is that they play in the East. When your path through the regular season and to the Finals is easier, your wins don't mean any less than they do when it's harder. That can help a roster play over their heads and develop the "team of destiny" attitude necessary to topple a giant. Like you, I think the Thunder still win the series. They took the Pacers for granted in game 1, but the game 3 loss seemed more like a classic case of home cooking for Indiana. I would expect the Thunder to come away with a road win in this series, and I'm not sure the Pacers win another one in Oklahoma City. But hey, a "team of destiny" ain't gonna sit down and shut up just because people think they should. So we'll see.
All of that said, and regardless of conference, a lot of the Pacers success can just be boiled down to the fact that they are a deep team with an extremely efficient and lightning fast offense that blitzes and overwhelms even the best defenses. Whether they're playing over their heads or not, they're good, and they're really well-optimized for the modern era. Though these Finals are not being watched by as many casual fans, the Pacers represent the platonic ideal of everything the league has tried to achieve with all of its rules changes in the last couple of decades. It just didn't happen in LA or New York or Miami or some other stronghold of NBA popularity. It happened in Indiana.
I may not like that this style of play is what wins the day more often than not, but it helped Indiana make it to the Finals with the league's 14th-ranked defense, and it helped Denver win the title last year with the league's 8th-ranked defense. You've gotta be in that upper-half, but you don't need to be a powerhouse on that end to win the championship anymore.
There's a difference when your boss is one of the richest people on planet earth and your boss being an assistant manager at Arby's. You can tell one guy to shove it and it won't affect you in the slightest. You tell Vivek to shove it and you'll never work in the NBA again
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kingsboi
Hall of Famer
this does give hope to other small market franchises that they too can maybe get a run going and put a potential banner in their rafters. Minnesota is just one example I can think of, they are very close, they just need that proper number two next to Edwards, among a few roster tweaks. I think Slim was the one that mentioned this will be the the seventh consecutive season where a new champion will be crowned.
QWERTYLICIOUS
Starter
But, see, your issue with the finals this year is actually exactly why I am enjoying the games more than I have enjoyed them in the past. Two teams who have never won a championship, one of them being a team that no one saw being here right now.
Much more enjoyable than seeing the Lakers, Celtics, or Warriors all the time.
QWERTYLICIOUS
Starter
This is pretty much how I feel about the Kings. If a franchise like the Spurs can win multiple championships, and if a franchise like the Pacers can make a run (OKC as well), it gives me some hope for the Kings. How much? I can't really say, because I don't really know. But I do have some hope.
ShastaKingsFan
All-Star
Again, market size isn't the issue. The problem is the owner
QWERTYLICIOUS
Starter
Tizzy Flip
Starter
I think what Carlisle is doing is a masterclass in coaching. He’s stuck to his rotations and game plan all season, keeping his starter mins at the low 30s max. He sat Hali late in the 3rd when the Thunder were building a lead that got up to 5. He didn’t panic. Thunder on the other hand saw an opening to build the lead and brought SGA earlier. A fresher Hali made a huge difference mid to late 4th vs. a gassed SGA. Honestly, what other coaches would have sat their best players for over 6 mins during a key stretch in game 3 of the NBA finals?Yep. The Pacers keep playing like they believe they can win. Some of it is that they play in the East. When your path through the regular season and to the Finals is easier, your wins don't mean any less than they do when it's harder. That can help a roster play over their heads and develop the "team of destiny" attitude necessary to topple a giant. Like you, I think the Thunder still win the series. They took the Pacers for granted in game 1, but the game 3 loss seemed more like a classic case of home cooking for Indiana. I would expect the Thunder to come away with a road win in this series, and I'm not sure the Pacers win another one in Oklahoma City. But hey, a "team of destiny" ain't gonna sit down and shut up just because people think they should. So we'll see.
All of that said, and regardless of conference, a lot of the Pacers success can just be boiled down to the fact that they are a deep team with an extremely efficient and lightning fast offense that blitzes and overwhelms even the best defenses. Whether they're playing over their heads or not, they're good, and they're really well-optimized for the modern era. Though these Finals are not being watched by as many casual fans, the Pacers represent the platonic ideal of everything the league has tried to achieve with all of its rules changes in the last couple of decades. It just didn't happen in LA or New York or Miami or some other stronghold of NBA popularity. It happened in Indiana.
I may not like that this style of play is what wins the day more often than not, but it helped Indiana make it to the Finals with the league's 14th-ranked defense, and it helped Denver win the title last year with the league's 8th-ranked defense. You've gotta be in that upper-half, but you don't need to be a powerhouse on that end to win the championship anymore.
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ShastaKingsFan
All-Star
The implication by some, has been that the smaller city market is a huge hurdle. It's been proven that it really isn't, so long as those that make the final decisions have a high basketball iQ and really know what they are doing....and take full advantage of the good breaks that everyone eventually receives
Tizzy Flip
Starter
So just trying to understand you’re thinking. If Spurs and Pacers give you hope and it’s not a market size thing, what is it? That we can carve out a niche like the Pacers without having “generational” players, or in the Spurs case just get a bunch of HOF centers drafted at #1 and somehow get one of the best coaches of all time that you groomed through the ranks?
QWERTYLICIOUS
Starter
A combination of both, but more so that I have hope that we will be able to build a front office at some point that is capable of hitting on their draft picks and acquiring the right pieces via free agency and trades.
Tizzy Flip
Starter
Beam team vision of playing fast and with break-neck speed worked until it didn’t. It was a good vision until we realized we can’t have so many below average shooters on the court at the same time (Fox, Sabonis), we can’t have our shooters be only spot-up shooters (Huerter, Keegan), we need more than 2 ball-handlers on the court at the same time, we can’t have guys who can’t sustain playing fast (Barnes, McGee). You also need a coach that won’t demand things that detract again the vision, like playing McGee and not playing Sasha. Easier said than done.
Teams will think Pacers are a good model, until they realize they’re all capable 3pt shooters, they almost always have 3/4 dudes who can bring the ball up, and they don’t have egos where players will complain about playing off-ball or not being able to just do DHO. That doesn’t grown on trees; it requires a vision and drafting/trading for the specific players that fit the vision with no compromise
