The Indiana Pacers are having a moment they were built for
LAS VEGAS — The Indiana Pacers were set to take on the Milwaukee Bucks in roughly an hour in the In-Season Tournament Semifinals as Pacers' guards Tyrese Haliburton and Buddy Hield sat at their lockers. They were prepping for the game while doing their usual brotherly bickering — Haliburton had just changed the music in the locker room from Linkin Park to Jay-Z, and Hield was letting everyone know that this wasn't what the team needed to get pumped up.
While the two fake argued, they also reflected. Neither of them have ever played in an NBA playoff game, so they were getting ready for the biggest game either of them have played in during their NBA careers.
"No question," Haliburton said when asked if this would be his most consequential game in the pros so far. He was trying to approach the game the same way he always does, but it was hard in the moment. "I think everybody's probably got a little extra juice."
Hield felt similarly. He's over 30-years old but has yet to reach the NBA playoffs. "I just can't wait to get out there. It's going to be a little different feeling wise. I haven't had this feeling in a long time. Nerves are positive nerves," he said.
Hield noted that he, and his teammates, can't overthink the task at hand. But he and Haliburton's emotions were an unavoidable obstacle for the young, ascending Pacers. They have some past NBA Champions and Finalists on their team, but this unit is still finding their way. But here they were, on the biggest stage they have played on to date, ready to prove who they could be.
In many ways, the Pacers were built for this stage. They are what the In-Season Tournament can help grow — young, developing teams that are largely unknown at the current stage of their rebuild. On TNT Monday night, Indiana took down the Boston Celtics on TNT to begin their ascent in front of millions. On Thursday against the Bucks, they could prove that they are a legitimate threat.
Their play style is enchanting, which only adds to their appeal in front of new viewers. In Las Vegas, and on National TV, they could show once again that their offense is elite, something that has seemed clear since opening night. Their Semifinal game against the Bucks was on ESPN, and with millions watching, they could display how potent their scoring attacking can be.
A game like this — one that means a lot to a young team and is filled with emotion and fanfare — can lead to poor play. Had the Pacers came out and looked disconnected or wild, most would have understood why even if it would have been disappointing internally.
Instead, they were level headed and poised. They struck first to open the game and consistently hit hard in the first half. T.J. McConnell, the oldest player on a young team, flummoxed Milwaukee. Myles Turner, the Pacers longest-tenured player, crushed the Bucks inside. Getting quality play from two veterans helped Indiana settle in and take a double-digit lead into halftime.
"I think that we've got a lot of guys that come in, put their heads down and work," Turner said after the game.
The Pacers may have gotten too comfortable. The second half opened with the Bucks dominating — it took them less than five minutes to completely erase the Pacers double-digit lead. Before you knew it, the 2021 NBA Champions were showing that they have another level. The Pacers were going to have to respond.
"In this tournament, what we've seen is that the team that's up at halftime gets hit with some kind of a blitz in the third quarter," Indiana's head coach, Rick Carlisle, said. "Boston was up on us; we hit them with a big third. The same thing happened tonight; Milwaukee hit us. It's to be expected."
Indiana regrouped. Part of a young team growing up is showing that they can win in tough environments, and with a crowd that had more Bucks fans than Pacers fans, and in a game in which they gave momentum away, the Pacers proved that they can hit another gear in the face of adversity.
They kept the game close even with the Bucks throwing their hardest punch, never trailing by more than six in the second half. Early in the fourth quarter, they recaptured the lead after spending just half a quarter trailing. For a team that isn't particularly tested, they had little trouble responding to a major challenge.
Haliburton was leading it all. In the third quarter alone, the star guard had nine points and five assists. If he was even slightly worse in that frame, the Bucks could have run away with the game. Instead, it remained close.
His stellar play continued in the fourth quarter, and his ability to get his teammates involved allowed other members of Indiana to reach a high level. Obi Toppin was hitting shots. Bruce Brown was too, and Turner continued his form from the first half. With Haliburton shifting the defense around, others used their extra space to punish Milwaukee.
This is the moment where Hield and Haliburton's pregame comments mattered the most. With 6:26 to go, despite Haliburton's great play, Giannis Antetokounmpo dunked the ball and gave the Bucks the lead again. He was dominating for much of the game and had 35 points at the time. A young team, and one that was dealing with nerves before the game, could have shrunk under the lights.
Instead, it was Indiana's moment. With Mike Breen, Doris Burke, and Pacers legend Reggie Miller on the call, the blue and gold imposed their will down the stretch of the game.
Brown — with an assist from Haliburton, of course — answered after Antetokounmpo's dunk to give Indiana the lead again. They never gave it back. Turner slammed one home, Haliburton scored, and the team collectively hit a peak on the defensive end. It was enough to outscore the Bucks 21-13 in the final six minutes of the game.
The poise from the Pacers was impressive, and the dagger shot was fitting. Haliburton hit Brook Lopez with a mean stepback and rose up for a three from the left wing. He drilled it, giving his team an eight-point lead. He pointed to his wrist, simulating where a watch would be, in celebration.
"I think it was just in the heat of the moment, having fun. I know I kind of pounded my chest and said it was my time, whatever, but I think really looking at it, it's our time. It's our time as a group," Haliburton said of his celebration. The nerves were gone.
In the most consequential game Haliburton, Hield, or a few other Pacers have ever played, they were ready for the moment. They could have packed it in many times, but they aren't built that way. This group believes that they can beat anybody on any stage, and they proved it in Las Vegas on Thursday night.
"As long as we play the right way, we know we're going to be in every basketball game. We have a lot of confidence in ourselves," Haliburton said after the game. He finished with 27 points, 15 assists, and zero turnovers. "It doesn't matter who believes in us. It really doesn't. As long as the guys in the locker room do."
The entire Pacers team shook off nerves and whatever other feelings they had before the game. That's what teams who are ready for a moment do. They'll have another, even bigger game on Saturday when they play in the first-ever NBA In-Season Tournament Finals. They have proved during the tournament that they will be ready for it.
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- Steven Rales purchases 15% of Indiana Pacers from Herbert Simon, now owns 20% of the team pending NBA approval. CLICK HERE.
- Indiana Pacers take down Milwaukee Bucks to advance to In-Season Tournament Finals. CLICK HERE.
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