The NBA Finals are set.
With a dominant 125-108 win in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Indiana Pacers eliminated the New York Knicks and booked a best-of-seven series with the Oklahoma City Thunder for the NBA championship.
In many ways, Game 6 felt like a must-win for Indiana. After jumping out to a 3-1 lead in the series, the Pacers squandered their first closeout opportunity in Game 5 at Madison Square Garden. Facing a do-or-die Game 7 on the road against this tough Knicks squad and their boisterous home crowd would have been a tall order, making this Game 6 victory even more crucial.
Pascal Siakam was named the Larry Bird Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player, and the honor was well deserved. The veteran forward finished with 31 points on 10-of-18 shooting, marking his third 30-point game of the series. He also had five rebounds, three assists, a steal, and three blocks in 36 minutes. His championship experience and steady presence helped guide Indiana through the intensity of this six-game matchup.
The final tally for the Larry Bird trophy was tight—Siakam received five votes while Tyrese Haliburton garnered the other four. Both delivered standout performances throughout the series and were pivotal to Indiana’s success.
Haliburton delivered 21 points, six rebounds, 13 assists, three steals, and a block in the win, including a strong fourth quarter push that helped keep New York at bay. In the final period, Haliburton tallied 11 points on five-of-six shooting, three rebounds, and four assists. He hit a 32-foot three-pointer with 59 seconds left in the contest that extended the Pacers’ lead to 20, 125-105, and put an exclamation point on their series win.
Indiana will now enter the NBA Finals where they are major underdogs against a dominant Oklahoma City team that has looked like the league’s best all season long. Still, the Pacers’ mix of length, depth, and perimeter shooting make them a dangerous opponent capable of pulling off an upset.
Siakam and Haliburton may not be the flashiest duo, but their ability to elevate those around them is immeasurably valuable to this team. On this Indiana roster full of role players and specialists, their ability to get the most out of their teammates transforms this team from a good one into a potentially great squad that is now only four wins away from the NBA championship.
Anything can happen in the NBA Finals and these Pacers have proved over the course of this postseason run of theirs that they can never truly be counted out.
