Magic Johnson Makes Bold Prediction For Pacers vs Bucks Series

The Indiana Pacers have a tough series against the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs. It's the same team that they took on in the first round of the playoffs last season.

Indiana feels confident that it can take down the Bucks again, although it won't be easy. Now that the Bucks will have Damian Lillard for most of the series, that changes how hard it will be for Indiana to win this series.

Former Lakers point guard Magic Johnson has given his thoughts on all of the playoff series in the first round, including this series.

Johnson had a pretty bold take when it comes to who will win the series and why. Of course, he made this decision when everyone thought Lillard was going to miss most of the series, so maybe his thoughts have changed.

We know that Giannis will definitely be the best player in this series but he’s going to need plenty of help from Bobby Portis, Brook Lopez, and Kyle Kuzma. Hopefully they can get Dame Lillard back! Halliburton must not only get double-figure assists, he must average a…
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) April 18, 2025

He believes that the Pacers will win the series, and he seems to imply that they will win even if Lillard eventually comes back. Lillard will miss Game 1 of this series, but will be back for Game 2.

The Pacers still feel good about their chances to beat the Bucks, even with Lillard back in the fold. He is a great offensive player, but the Pacers will likely try to work him into a lot of action on defense.

Tyrese Haliburton has no problem getting around Lillard. Expect the Pacers to use a lot of pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop to make Lillard have to make tough decisions.

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Indiana was able to do that last season, which is part of the reason why they won the series in six games. Milwaukee didn't have much of an answer for Haliburton or Myles Turner.

Johnson seems to think that Haliburton must be a really good passer in this series, as well as average a triple-double. He's not that great of a rebounder, so that likely won't happen.

Still, Haliburton is the best passer in these playoffs. He can find his teammates in spots that other players don't even try to make passes.

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