The Indiana Pacers have worked very hard this year to prove that last year’s run to the Eastern Conference Finals was not a fluke. A lot of pundits believe they only made it that far because everyone else in the East got hurt.
Indiana has played some really good basketball this season to prove that it was for real. The Pacers currently sit fourth in the Eastern Conference standings.
They made the Eastern Conference Finals as a six-seed last season, so they know they can compete as a four-seed. That would give them home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
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Despite their success this season, not many around the league think that the Pacers have a real shot to make noise in the playoffs. Everyone else still sees Boston and Cleveland as the only true contenders.
Former WNBA star Candace Parker is not one of those people. The analyst for TNT believes that the Pacers are still a really good team.
The Indiana Pacers are not going to be an easy out.”
— Dustin Dopirak (@DustinDopirak) April 1, 2025
She disagrees that the Pacers are going to be an easy team to eliminate in the playoffs. She’s right to believe that, too.
Not only do the Pacers have a lot of really good players, but they have a lot of guys who were on the team last year when they made that run. They have real playoff experience now.
The biggest reason why the Pacers lost against the Celtics in what was a closer series than it looked is that they couldn’t close games when they had the lead late.
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That playoff experience should help them be better in those situations in this year’s playoffs. They have also played well against the top three seeds in the East this season.
Indiana is likely going to either be the fourth or the fifth seed in the East. It would be surprising if they were somehow able to catch the Knicks for the third spot.
As long as Tyrese Haliburton continues the level of strong play he’s had since the All-Star break, this Pacers team has a real shot to make another deep run.
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For more news and notes on the Indiana Pacers, visit Indiana Pacers on SI.
