What a season that was.
Even with the upsetting ending – a Recreation Seven loss within the NBA Finals to the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder, devastatingly punctuated by the intense damage to celebrity guard Tyrese Haliburton – the Pacers simply posted a 12 months for the ages. They gained the Japanese Convention and in addition garnered the appreciation of the basketball world within the course of for the aesthetic, fluid, and unselfish model of play they provided alongside the best way. They actually have been one stroke of luck away from successful all of it, for the primary time in franchise historical past.
With out Haliburton, the trail to competitiveness is unwalkable. But the Pacers have each the chance and the requirement to maintain including to their crew, attempt to discover the positives from the scenario (for instance, extra sport time for Jarace Walker), and enhance in anticipation of his return to full well being.
The excellent news is that they’re well-positioned to try this. Due to the best way through which they constructed their crew – by no means bottoming out within the draft, not going the three-star mannequin, nor investing all their draft capital in trades for incumbent stars – they’re each competitively priced and sufficiently stocked with belongings. Uncommon is the aggressive crew so well-positioned to nonetheless enhance within the close to future. (Oklahoma Metropolis, in fact, is the notable exception. However the Pacers most likely don’t wish to hear about them in the mean time.)
With this in thoughts, there follows a have a look at the Indiana Pacers’ roster and spending choices heading into the 2025 NBA offseason.
