Photo by Markus Spiske: https://www.pexels.com/photo/basketball-hoop-in-basketball-court-1752757/
What a game. What a shot. What a story.
The Indiana Pacers are three wins away from the greatest achievement in their franchise’s history, an NBA title.
Logo by Sydney Byerly, TheStatehouseFile.com.
If you didn’t watch Thursday night—or haven’t all season—you might want to start clearing your schedule. The Pacers are magic on a basketball court, constantly hitting last-second, game-winning shots against their opponents.
Last night, that’s exactly what they did. The Pacers led the game for a total of .3 seconds after Tyrese Haliburton hit his fourth last-second and game-winning/tying shot this postseason.
I’ve been a fan since I was 5 and have witnessed the many heartbreaks suffered over the years. The last time the Indiana Pacers played in the NBA Finals, I wasn’t even born yet, Haliburton was an infant, and fans were still chanting “Reggie.” Making the NBA Finals is one thing, but winning it is completely different.
Baby Luke Shepherd, in a 2014 photo taken by his dad, Paul, crying over a Pacers loss at Banker’s Life, now Gainbridge Fieldhouse. A TSF reporter and Franklin College journalism student now, Luke wasn’t crying Thursday night.
Photo provided.
Let me give you some context. This is the team’s second appearance in the NBA Finals, and they have never won a championship. Meanwhile, the opponent for the Pacers, the Oklahoma City Thunder, had the fifth greatest regular season record in NBA history, going 68-14.
The Thunder also have had one of the greatest defensive statistical seasons in league history, and they have the 2024-25 NBA MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
For the record, Haliburton’s game-winning shot was the fifth of his career. Since 1997, there is only one player who’s done it more than Haliburton: LeBron James, who holds eight in his career. The difference between the two is Haliburton is 25 years old.
If you ever think a Pacers game is over early, think again. Thursday night’s 15-point comeback against the Thunder was the Pacers’ fifth of these playoffs. The Pacers had 20 turnovers in the first half, the most turnovers in any half of an NBA Finals game in league history.
Clearly, they overcame the odds, but after witnessing the last few different series, I never felt like it was over. I found myself slowly and slowly getting closer to the TV during the final three minutes. The lead shrunk from 15 to 10, five and then to zero. I went from the couch to up on my feet to hugging my lifetime-Pacers-fan father and jumping in the air.
In my opinion, these are the moments that make live sports the greatest sight on earth. They bring strangers, families, cities and countries together in a time when we’ve never feel further apart.
These incredible moments are very rare in sports, and the Pacers have done it five times this postseason. They are quickly rewriting the history books and making a Cinderella run for the ages.
Even if you aren’t a basketball fan, or a sports fan of any sort, you should watch the Indiana Pacers. They don’t have just one player, they have a team that works together and plays basketball how it was meant to be played.
In 49 states, it’s just basketball. However, this is Indiana, and the Pacers are three wins away from greatness.
Luke Shepherd is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news site powered by Franklin College journalism students.