It’s easy to forget that the Indiana Pacers reached the Eastern Conference Finals last season. Their run was largely overshadowed by the Boston Celtics’ dominant march through the East to the NBA Finals and eventual championship. Nonetheless, Indiana is determined to prove that its 2024 success was no fluke—and that it belongs among the Eastern Conference’s elite.

The Pacers started off this season slow though and fell off everyone’s radar. A ‘down year’ by Tyrese Haliburton and the early absence of starting forward Aaron Nesmith were the main culprits of their struggles. However, Indiana has come alive since the calendar flipped from 2024 to 2025 and it seems like they are peaking at the right time heading into the postseason.

At the start of 2025, the Pacers sat eighth in the East with a sub-.500 record of 16-18. They were as low as 11th as recently as December 11th when they sported a dismal 10-15 mark.

Indiana, however, became a different team in the new year, kicking things off with 10 wins in their 12 January games to climb from eighth to fourth. They have held onto the fourth seed ever since and are now cruising into the postseason with a 43-30 record—a remarkable turnaround driven by 27 wins in their 39 contests this 2025.

Haliburton’s fingerprints are all over the Pacers’ resurgence as he has looked like himself again following the All-Star break with averages of 21.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, 11.9 assists, 2.2 steals, and only 1.1 turnovers in 14 games since. Overall, his numbers this season are still indeed lower than the last two where he was named an NBA All-Star, but another deep postseason run should help soften the blow of his exclusion from this year’s midseason showcase.

This Indiana team around Haliburton remains largely intact from last season and this continuity has paid off. Pascal Siakam has been rewarded for his steady play with his first NBA All-Star nod as a Pacer—and the third overall of his career. He is averaging 20.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game, which are actually his lowest numbers since 2018-19 when he was a key role player on the Toronto Raptors’ championship-winning team. However, this dip reflects Indiana’s depth more than any decline in Siakam’s quality, as he has willingly taken a step back for the team’s success.

Similarly, Myles Turner’s scoring numbers (15.5 points per game on 48.1% field goal shooting) are also at their lowest since 2022.

The humility of Siakam and Turner to take lesser roles on offense has allowed this team to play a more free-flowing brand of basketball that maximizes Haliburton’s playmaking abilities. There are eight Indiana players averaging at least nine points per game this season and this type of variety on offense has made them tough to stop.

Last year’s run to the Eastern Conference Finals has raised the expectations for this Pacers team heading into the playoffs. Though they are a tier below the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics, they have the tools to pull off an upset against either team in the second round if things fall into place. This Indiana team is a fun one to watch and it is beginning to look like the upcoming postseason is going to be a sequel of last year’s breakout performance.