Pacers Season Recap: This is only the beginning
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
INDIANAPOLIS — What a season. What a ride. If Pacer fans were handed the script of the 2023-2024 season last September, 100% of them would have signed the document. And though the season has ended with some crushing losses in the Conference Finals, it was truly a season to remember with a ton of excitement, and a ton of growth.
The Pacers played 100 games this year. They were projected to win 37 in the regular season and maybe compete for a play-in spot. They blew past expectations and were one of four teams left standing. No matter how they got there, or how it ended, one thing is for sure:vThe Indiana Pacers are back on the map. And this is only the beginning.
Head Coach Rick Carlisle said the internal goal was to reach the Conference Finals within the next three years. They did it in one.
Think back to everything that happened this year.
•The in-season tournament run with exciting victories and a 2nd place finish.
•Tyrese Haliburton putting up historical numbers on way to an All-NBA berth.
•All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis, with Pacer players and the city representing extremely well.
•Trading for Pascal Siakam in one of the first win-now moves in many years for the franchise.
•One of the best offenses in NBA history.
•Myles Turner becoming the all-time blocks leader in franchise history and Tyrese Haliburton becoming the single-season assists leader.
•First playoff appearance since 2020. First playoff wins, series’ wins, and Conference Finals appearance since 2014.
Did the Pacers get some luck with injury issues for Milwaukee and New York? Absolutely. But that’s part of the game, and it happens just about every year. Winning both Game 6’s, winning a game 7 at the Garden, and giving Boston all they could handle in three games of that series showed incredible growth for an inexperienced team.
They will also be better in the future because of this experience. This run should also make the franchise hungrier, and more aware of their shortcomings and what they need to get them over the top. While fans of opposing teams may think Indy was only here because of injuries, they’re not accounting for what this experience just gave to a team on the rise. Let’s also not forget, this team has Bennedict Mathurin, Jarace Walker, and Ben Sheppard in their back pocket. Andrew Nembhard showed a glimpse of what his future may hold in the playoffs, and this team is likely to bring back a Haliburton/Siakam combination that will only improve with a full off-season together.
There are no guarantees moving forward. It’s hard to win in the playoffs. It’s easy to say “they’ll be back,” but it’s a lot more complicated than that. Other teams can clearly improve. Match-ups can determine a lot. And as we’ve seen, health will determine a lot as well. But I will say this much: The coaches and players have the perfect mindset heading into next year:
Pascal Siakam: “I think it’s easy after a season like that to say ‘oh, we were so close and we’re gonna get back to it,’ but it’s not guaranteed. I’ve known that firsthand. I feel encouraged, but it’s a lot of work. We’ve got to get better as a team and organization. If you want to get to that level, it takes a lot. Obviously I feel encouraged, but there’s a long way to go.”
Tyrese Haliburton– “I think just continuing to play with that chip on our shoulder. We haven’t arrived by any means. We had a great year. We did something I don’t think anybody thought we were capable of doing. Now it’s a whole new thing. We’ve got to prove this year wasn’t a fluke and that we’re capable of doing this. We’re going to continue proving people wrong.”
Rick Carlisle– “Those things don’t guarantee anything for the following year. Those experiences will give this team tremendous amount of confidence going forward, but no guarantees.”
This will be an interesting off-season for the Pacers. I fully expect them to re-sign Pascal Siakam and bring just about everybody back. Obi Toppin will be the main question as far as current players go. Will the Pacers pay the tax next season? Will they go for a big splash, or mostly run it back? Chad Buchanan said both options are on the table. Either way, it was one exciting year for the Indiana Pacers. The future also looks bright, and they will at least have an opportunity to be a contender in the East again next season.
We are just four months away from Media Day. Let the countdown begin.
