Pacers Being Tested in East Standings as Division Rival Closes in

The Indiana Pacers have been one of the best teams in the league as the calendar flipped to 2025.

The Pacers started the season sluggishly, and they were one of the more inconsistent teams in the league. A lot of it had to do with the array of injuries they suffered at the start of the season.

At one point, their entire frontcourt was depleted, and they were without two of their top wing players, Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith.

However, the Pacers have turned the tide over the past month or so. While that is the case, the Pacers are not in the clear yet, not even close.

They sit as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference but are only 4.5 games up of the seventh seed, Orlando Magic.

Not only that, but Indiana only has a one-game lead over their division rivals, the Detroit Pistons.

The #Pistons are firmly in the No. 6 spot in the East, by 3.5 games. They are 1.5 games from the No. 4 position.

With 24 games left, they have a shot of HOSTING playoff series.

There were no typographical or factual errors made in the production of this tweet. pic.twitter.com/ZdVzK7wJuL
— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) February 25, 2025

The Pistons have turned things around and at the right time. They've won seven games in a row and are 8-2 in their last 10 games.

As for the Pacers, they have not been as great in their last seven games. They've recorded a 4-3 record, which has allowed the Pistons to get back in the thick of things.

It's not out of the realm of possibility that the Pistons could overtake the Pacers or even the Milwaukee Bucks in the standings with 24 games left for Detroit.

The Pacers will no longer play the Pistons for the rest of the season, as their four-game season series all took place before the All-Star break.

Indiana went 3-1 against the Pistons in their season series, so if there ends up being a tiebreaker between the two, the Pacers would have the edge.

With 26 games in the season, it is crucial that the Pacers finish strong. Realistically, the Pacers could finish the season as high as the fourth seed and have homecourt advantage for at least the first round.

That would be massive for a Pacers team that holds a 16-9 home record as things stand.

On the bright side, according to Tankathon, the Pacers have the 23rd toughest-ranked remaining schedule compared to the Pistons, who have the 15th-ranked toughest remaining schedule.

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