Indiana Pacers

• 1. Introduction

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  The Indiana Pacers drew their name from the pace cars of the Indianapolis 500 and from Indiana's harness racing industry. Six investors established the franchise in early 1967 as a founding member of the American Basketball Association. The group included attorney Richard Tinkham, entrepreneur Lyn Treece, sports agent Chuck Barnes, and Indianapolis Star sports writer Bob Collins. By 1970, the Pacers had won their first championship. By 1973, they had won three. Why did a team that dominant struggle so badly after joining the NBA? How did a single player's personality come to define an entire generation of Pacers basketball? And what does it mean that the franchise's most memorable run came in 2025, when its best player could not finish the deciding game?

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• 2. ABA Dynasty

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  Bob "Slick" Leonard took over as Pacers head coach early in their second season, replacing Larry Staverman. Leonard was a former Indiana Hoosiers standout himself, and he quickly turned the franchise into a dominant force. The players who gathered around him were exceptional. Mel Daniels, Roger Brown, and George McGinnis formed the core. Bob Netolicky, Rick Mount, and Freddie Lewis filled out the roster. For their first seven years, the Pacers played home games at the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum. They also played select playoff games at venues including Anderson High School Wigwam and Assembly Hall.

  Against the Kentucky Colonels in 1972-73, the Pacers needed seven games to secure their third ABA title. Two years earlier, they had beaten the New York Nets in six games for their second. The franchise's first championship, in 1969-70, came via a six-game series against the Los Angeles Stars. Across the ABA's nine-year history, Indiana appeared in the Finals five times, an ABA record no other franchise matched.

  In 1974, the team moved to Market Square Arena in downtown Indianapolis. The new arena held a different kind of promise. The 1974-75 season brought a fifth Finals appearance, with the Pacers meeting their archrivals, the Kentucky Colonels, across Market Square Arena and Freedom Hall. The Colonels won that series in five games. One year later, the ABA merged with the NBA. The entry fee charged to each former ABA team for the privilege of joining: $3.2 million.

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• 3. The Price of Joining

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  For four years after the merger, the Pacers were barred from sharing in national television revenues. Financial troubles that had begun in their final ABA seasons compounded the pressure. By the time of the merger, the team had already begun selling off star players. Their inaugural NBA season ended 36-46. Billy Knight and Don Buse represented Indiana at that year's All-Star Game; both were traded before the following season began.

  In 1980, the Pacers traded Alex English to the Denver Nuggets to reacquire George McGinnis. McGinnis had been a star during the ABA years but contributed very little during his two-year return. English, in contrast, became one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. The Pacers deepened that loss the following year by trading a 1984 draft pick to the Portland Trail Blazers for center Tom Owens. Owens played one year with little impact and was out of the league a year later. That draft pick became the second overall selection in 1984. Portland used it to take Sam Bowie, passing on Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. Indiana finished the 1982-83 season with a franchise-worst record of 20-62.

  Jack Ramsay replaced George Irvine as coach ahead of the 1986-87 season and guided the Pacers to a 41-41 record, their second playoff appearance as an NBA team. Rookie Chuck Person, nicknamed "The Rifleman" for his renowned long-range shooting, won NBA Rookie of the Year honors that year. Indiana earned its first NBA playoff victory in game 3 against the Atlanta Hawks but lost the series in four games. In February 1989, the Pacers traded center Herb Williams to the Dallas Mavericks for forward Detlef Schrempf. In 1992-93, Schrempf would move from sixth man to starter at small forward and earn his first All-Star selection.

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• 4. Reggie Miller's Indianapolis

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  Reggie Miller from UCLA was drafted by the Pacers in 1987, beginning his career as a backup to veteran John Long. Many Indianapolis fans had wanted the team to select Indiana Hoosiers standout Steve Alford instead. Miller did not get a warm welcome, but he earned one over time. His 18 years with the franchise would define what it meant to wear a Pacers uniform.

  The rivalry with the New York Knicks established Miller's personality for millions of basketball fans. In Game 5 of the 1994 Eastern Conference finals, Indiana trailed the Knicks by 15 points early in the fourth quarter. Miller scored 25 points in that quarter alone, including five 3-point field goals. He also flashed a choke sign at the Knicks' courtside celebrity, Spike Lee. The Knicks won the next two games and the series, but the image of Miller taunting New York had been fixed in public memory.

  Miller was a tri-captain and leading scorer of the USA Basketball team that won the gold medal at the 1994 FIBA World Championship. The 1993-94 Pacers, under new head coach Larry Brown, went 47-35, the franchise's best record in the NBA era to that point. Brown's team swept Shaquille O'Neal and the Orlando Magic in the first round, then upset the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks in the conference semifinals. The following season, Indiana went 52-30 and won the franchise's first Central Division title. The Pacers sent the Knicks home in seven games in the conference semifinals. In Game 1 of that series, Indiana trailed by six points with 16.4 seconds remaining. Miller scored eight points in 8.9 seconds to secure a two-point win.

  Larry Bird arrived as head coach for the 1997-98 season. He led the Pacers to 58-24, the most wins the franchise had ever achieved in the NBA. Both Miller and center Rik Smits made the All-Star team. In 1999-2000, after a 56-26 regular season, Indiana reached the NBA Finals for the first time. The Los Angeles Lakers defeated them in six games. Indiana won Game 5 by 33 points, the worst playoff defeat the Lakers had suffered to that point.

  After Bird's retirement and the departure of key players, Rick Carlisle took over as head coach in 2003. The 2003-04 Pacers finished 61-21, the best record in the NBA that season and the best in franchise history. Ron Artest was named the league's Defensive Player of the Year. Indiana fell to the Detroit Pistons in six games in the Eastern Conference finals. That same off-season, the Pacers traded forward Al Harrington to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for Stephen Jackson.

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• 5. Night at the Palace

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  On the 19th of November, 2004, Ron Artest committed a hard foul against Ben Wallace late in a game the Pacers were winning at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Wallace pushed back hard and threw a towel. The confrontation escalated into a full-scale brawl involving fans and multiple Indiana players. A Pistons fan named John Green, seated near Wallace's brother, threw a cup of Diet Coke at Artest. Artest was lying on the scorer's table, trying to compose himself. He charged into the stands. Stephen Jackson followed. Jermaine O'Neal struck a fan who had come onto the court. The game was called off with 45.9 seconds remaining on the clock.

  NBA Commissioner David Stern handed down suspensions that shocked the league. Artest received 73 games, the longest suspension ever handed down for an on-court incident in NBA history. Jackson was suspended for 30 games. O'Neal's initial 25-game suspension was later reduced to 15 by arbitrator Roger Kaplan, a ruling upheld by U.S. District Judge George B. Daniels. O'Neal also faced two counts of assault and battery. Artest, Jackson, Anthony Johnson, and David Harrison each faced one criminal count. The franchise went from Eastern Conference finals contender to a team hovering around .500.

  Despite the adversity, Indiana finished the 2004-05 season at 44-38 and made the playoffs for the 13th time in 14 years. In the first round, they beat the Boston Celtics in seven games, winning a road game 7 in Boston by a score of 97-70. It was only the third time the Celtics had lost a game 7 at home. Reggie Miller played his final game on the 19th of May, 2005, game 6 of the second round against Detroit. He scored 27 points and received a standing ovation from the crowd. The Pacers lost. Miller retired after 18 seasons, all with Indiana, without an NBA championship. On the 30th of March, 2006, the franchise retired his number 31 jersey in a game against the Phoenix Suns.

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• 6. From Granger to Oladipo

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  In the 2005 NBA draft, the Pacers selected Danny Granger 17th overall. That same off-season, they traded Ron Artest to the Sacramento Kings for forward Peja Stojakovic. The franchise was building toward a new core. In the 2010 NBA draft, they added forward Paul George with the 10th overall pick.

  By the 2012-13 season, Indiana had finished 49-32 and returned to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2004. On the 7th of April, 2013, the Pacers clinched their first Central Division title since 2003-04. They lost to the defending champion Miami Heat in seven games.

  The 2013-14 Pacers opened the season 33-7 and eventually peaked at 40-11. They finished 56-26 as the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Paul George and center Roy Hibbert both made the All-Star team. The second half of the season collapsed, and Indiana lost to the Miami Heat for the third consecutive postseason.

  What ended the George era was not a postseason loss. On the 1st of August, 2014, George was playing in a Team USA scrimmage in preparation for the FIBA World Cup when his right leg caught on the stanchion of the hoop on a fast break. He had been trying to defend James Harden. The leg suffered an open fracture to the tibia and fibula. George was stretchered from the court. Surgery followed the next day. He returned to game action on the 5th of April, 2015, playing fifteen minutes against the Miami Heat.

  On the 30th of June, 2017, the Pacers traded George to the Oklahoma City Thunder for guard Victor Oladipo and forward Domantas Sabonis. Oladipo won the NBA Most Improved Player Award in his first season in Indiana, improving across every major statistical category. He led the NBA in steals per game and earned All-Star selections in both 2018 and 2019. On the 23rd of January, 2019, playing against the Toronto Raptors, Oladipo ruptured his quad tendon and was ruled out for the remainder of the season. Indiana finished 48-34 and qualified for the playoffs for the fourth consecutive time. Victor Oladipo was traded to the Houston Rockets in January 2021 as part of a four-team deal that also sent James Harden to Brooklyn.

  The 2021-22 Pacers finished 25-57, missing the playoffs for consecutive seasons for the first time since 2007-10. The front office then pursued a deliberate teardown. They moved Domantas Sabonis, Caris LeVert, Justin Holiday, Jeremy Lamb, and Malcolm Brogdon in a series of trades. In return, they collected young players and multiple future first-round picks.

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• 7. The Haliburton Generation

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  From those trades, the Pacers notably received guard Tyrese Haliburton, acquired from the Sacramento Kings. On the 6th of July, 2023, Haliburton signed a maximum contract extension worth up to $260 million over five years. That same day, he was named a representative for the United States at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup. The franchise also announced a two-year, $45 million contract for Bruce Brown on that date. This was Haliburton's team now.

  Haliburton had already made his first All-Star appearance in 2023 as a reserve guard for the Eastern Conference. On the 17th of January, 2024, the Pacers acquired All-Star forward Pascal Siakam from the Toronto Raptors in a three-team deal. Haliburton was named a starting guard for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game, held in Indianapolis, his second consecutive selection and first as a starter. The Pacers finished the 2023-24 season 47-35. In the playoffs, they beat Milwaukee and then the New York Knicks in seven games to reach the Eastern Conference finals. The Boston Celtics eliminated them in that round.

  The 2024-25 Pacers won 50 games and entered the playoffs as the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. They beat the Milwaukee Bucks in five games in the first round, then beat the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in five games. In the Eastern Conference finals against the New York Knicks, Haliburton hit a game-tying basket in Game 1 and then imitated Reggie Miller's choke sign from 1994, the same gesture Miller had directed at the Knicks. The Pacers won the series in six games and reached the NBA Finals for only the second time in franchise history. Their opponent was the Oklahoma City Thunder, the other top seed.

  Indiana led the series 2-1 before falling behind 3-2. The Pacers forced a Game 7, the first deciding game in the Finals since 2016. In the first quarter of that game, Haliburton tore his Achilles tendon and could not return. His team played on without him. Across the entire run, Haliburton had delivered three game-winning shots, against Milwaukee, Cleveland, and Oklahoma City, and a game-tying basket against New York. Myles Turner departed for the Milwaukee Bucks before the 2025-26 season began, ending ten seasons in Indiana. Haliburton's injury kept him off the court for the entire year. The Pacers finished that season 19-63, the worst record in franchise history, with losing streaks of 13 and 16 games.

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