Aaron Nesmith discusses the Pacers' Game 6 win over the Thunder
Aaron Nesmith had 10 points and three assists in the Pacers' 108-91 win over the Thunder in Game 6 of the NBA Finals.
Dustin Dopirak
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New York Post
24 minutes ago
- New York Post
Only the Pacers can prevent the dawn of a dull Thunder dynasty
The Pacers will not let their story end. They will dance on their deathbed, offering hope until there is no time remaining. It should be no surprise after the past two months. It should not be shocking that the Pacers have pushed the NBA's most dominant team to the edge of collapse, saving their season and forcing the NBA Finals to a Game 7, following a 108-91 blowout win over the Thunder on Thursday night in Indianapolis. After manhandling the top-seeded Cavaliers and beating the Knicks on the momentum of one of the most improbable comebacks of all time, the Pacers are now only one win from their first NBA championship, one win from pulling one of the most unlikely upsets in championship history. Advertisement The Pacers moved the ball like the 1970s Knicks and forced turnovers (21) like the 2025 Thunder, while Oklahoma City showed its youth in its biggest moment (8-of-30 from 3, eight turnovers from MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander). Tyrese Haliburton played through an injured calf, gutting out 14 points and five assists in 23 minutes, and five other teammates scored in double figures.
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Thunder vs. Pacers NBA Finals: Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana once again rise to the challenge to thwart OKC's coronation
INDIANAPOLIS — The ultimate game. That's what coach Rick Carlisle kept saying following the Indiana Pacers' somewhat improbable Game 6 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, sending the Finals to a decisive Game 7 for the first time since 2016. Advertisement It feels like a window into the Pacers' collective psyche, that all they had to do was take care of business Thursday night and in front of them would be the opportunity of a lifetime. 'One game,' Carlisle said. 'I mean, this is what it's all about. I mean, this is … this is what you dream about growing up, this kind of opportunity.' The notion is simplified, but if you look at the Pacers as a team that has grown in confidence since the NBA Finals have begun, a team that didn't feel it threw away its best chance at an upset two games ago with the Game 4 collapse, this makes sense. There was no stopping the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) They aren't supposed to be here, but they don't know that. Advertisement But they knew something we didn't, something our eyes wouldn't allow us to. If they had a reasonably healthy Tyrese Haliburton — who went through round-the-clock treatment and consultation over the last 72 hours — they could do more than make this elimination game respectable. Haliburton didn't come out of the tunnel like Willis Reed. He wasn't limping around like Isiah Thomas on a bad ankle. It was hard to tell just how hurt Haliburton was, although it surely seemed like he was ailing walking out of Game 5 in Oklahoma City. He had what he called an 'honest conversation' with Carlisle, given how ineffective he was in Game 5 when the Pacers clawed back from a big deficit only to let it slip away with five disastrous minutes, to make sure he wasn't dragging his teammates down. Advertisement But not going out there for Game 6 was not an option. 'I just look at it as I want to be out there to compete with my brothers,' Haliburton said. 'These are guys that I'm willing to go to war with, and we've had such a special year, and we have a special bond as a group, and you know, I think I'd beat myself up if I didn't give it a chance.' But the chance turned to confidence, perhaps buoyed by the healing powers provided by Gainbridge Fieldhouse, and the Pacers rolled to a dominant 108-91 win to send the series back to Oklahoma City. Haliburton's 14 points and five assists don't jump off the page, but the first time he hit a shot he almost looked to the heavens to say, 'Finally ...' after going bucket-less in Game 5. Advertisement 'We've got one game. One game,' Haliburton said. 'It's nothing that's happened before matters, and nothing that's going to happen after matters. It's all about that one game. Just trying to approach it the right way for the next couple days.' Now, they believe. Perhaps the signal was Carlisle not messing around with Haliburton's status, coming right out in pregame and saying Haliburton was ready to go and that his injured calf could handle the rigors of the biggest game in franchise history. "What's the point? I mean, this time of year playing games isn't going to get you anywhere,' Carlisle said 90 minutes before game time. 'We got a job to do tonight. We've got to get ready to battle a team that has been the best team in the league all year long. It's a tough game. It's an elimination game. There's a lot going on.' The Indiana Pacers cannot be trifled with. They cannot be broken. If they buckled, they quickly came back to their feet before any knockout punch could be delivered. Advertisement The Pacers put themselves into the Thunder's luggage, stalling a victory celebration many expected before the night began. The Pacers led by as many as 30 at the end of the third quarter, and the Thunder played their reserves for the final 12 minutes, thus making the score look more respectable than it was. The Thunder are kings in waiting and perhaps will emerge victorious in this series to validate their favored status. But there is no intimidation factor across the way. They don't win the game before walking into the building — at least not yet. The Pacers are almost defiant about looking at the Thunder as some unbeatable juggernaut, claiming with certainty their confidence hasn't grown from the start — but through six games one cannot deny how comfortable the Pacers have gotten. If the Thunder thought they graduated by beating Nikola Jokić and the beaten-up Denver Nuggets, they've found out they're a few credits short of completion and headed to summer school. Advertisement 'I think that's just always been us. I don't think that changed,' Pacers forward Pascal Siakam said. 'We continue to be us, no matter what, and I think that's what makes us who we are.' They morphed into the best of what Oklahoma City has done in this series, providing their own 40 minutes of hell — targeting the league's Most Valuable Player all night. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was in his own personal purgatory, with eight of the Thunder's 21 turnovers that got the Pacers into the open floor when the set offense was taking its time. Every time he turned his back, there was a Pacer, scrapping, reaching, getting in his space to make him think and throw off whatever rhythm the Thunder believed they gained. The Pacers have stymied Gilgeous-Alexander as well as anyone has this postseason, bringing his assist-to-turnover ratio to 27-to-23 in the Finals. For reference, he's a three-to-one performer the past two seasons, but Andrew Nembhard isn't giving him much space and is tireless in making him work. Advertisement One exhausts himself when he knows a championship is close, when it feels likely, when it no longer feels like a dream that is unattainable. Jalen Williams, the Thunder's co-star who's blooming every game, went from putting up 40 in Game 5 to being a ghastly minus-40 in 26 minutes. In the middle two quarters, the Pacers outscored the Thunder by a whopping 62-35 margin, and it wasn't long before the Thunder packed up their things, living to fight a Game 7 on their home floor. And if the Thunder think that will bring them solace, they're in for another rude awakening. 'It's so, so, exciting. As a basketball fan, there's nothing like a Game 7,' Haliburton said. 'There's nothing like a Game 7 in the NBA Finals. Dreamed of being in this situation my whole life. What happened in the past doesn't matter. What happened today doesn't matter. It's all about one game and approaching that the right way.' The Thunder have created a storm they cannot contain, with a seventh game that feels like an opportunity for all kinds of history. The ultimate game.
New York Times
43 minutes ago
- New York Times
Tyrese Haliburton's biggest moment in Game 6 was simply showing up for his Pacers
INDIANAPOLIS — Tyrese Haliburton was noticeably hobbled in the Indiana Pacers' Game 5 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday. He didn't make a single field goal and finished with just four points. After the game, Haliburton said that if he could walk, he would play in Game 6, despite having a strained right calf. It is the NBA Finals, after all. Advertisement Despite Haliburton's assertion, Indiana was written off as dead. But if we've learned anything from watching these Pacers, it's that they're at their best when their backs are against the wall. Haliburton went through the team's pregame walkthrough and underwent various strength tests on Thursday. Coach Rick Carlisle told reporters before the game that Haliburton would play without a minutes restriction, though he would be monitored 'closely.' 'He's super important to us,' Carlisle said. 'I think the big thing was just there wasn't a lot of drama. The drama was created in the press somewhat because there's a lot of talk about it. It was not coming from him. He was straightforward. He didn't want a lot of attention. He was doing everything possible to be able to play.' Haliburton played just 23 minutes in the Pacers' 108-91 victory that forced a decisive Game 7. He missed his first four shots but found his rhythm and knocked down his fifth attempt late in the first quarter. In a must-win scenario, Haliburton was exactly who his team needed him to be. 'He's a tough kid,' teammate Pascal Siakam said. 'I had no doubt that he was going to be out there with us. It just shows he's one of our leaders on the team and he's doing everything he can to be out there for us, and we appreciate that.' Added Myles Turner: 'It was never a doubt, man. I think that he answered the call obviously, but as far as playing and whatnot, I knew he was going to be out there.' Haliburton went to the bench with 5:25 remaining in the third quarter and rested for the remainder of the game. He finished with 14 points, five assists and two steals. He made 5 of 12 from the field and 3 of 7 beyond the arc. 'He did amazing,' teammate Obi Toppin said. 'He led us to a win, and he's a soldier. He's not going to let no little injury hold him back from playing in the finals and helping this team win. He's helped us get to this point, and he's going to keep going until he can't.' Haliburton's heroics didn't include a game-winning or game-tying shot. Instead, it was all about showing up — both physically and on the stat sheet. 'Just everything he's dealing with, with his body and how he continues to lead, and just give 100 percent whenever he's out there just trickles down to us,' Pacers guard Ben Sheppard said. 'We look at him for hope and energy, and that's what he's able to do.' Advertisement Whatever level of pain Haliburton was in during Thursday's game, he said it wasn't top of mind. 'I just look at it as I want to be out there to compete with my brothers,' he said. 'We've had such a special year, and we have a special bond as a group. I think I'd beat myself up if I didn't give it a chance. I just want to be out there and fight. '(I) just had to have an honest conversation with Coach that if I didn't look like myself and was hurting the team, like, sit me down. Obviously, I want to be on the floor, but I want to win more than anything.' Haliburton's passion and intensity were on full display in the Pacers' rout. As was his showmanship. In the second quarter, Haliburton stole a pass from the Thunder's Jalen Williams, tip-toed on the sideline to stay inbounds and then, with a pirouette, tossed a no-look pass that led to a monster dunk from Siakam. As he raced back down the court, Haliburton high-fived a few people sitting courtside. 'I was so tired after that,' Haliburton said. 'I was really hoping they would call a timeout, but we had to get back out on defense. That's a special moment especially because we are always getting on Pascal for not dunking anymore. That was cool to see. 'Honestly, me and Pascal have not spoken about this play yet. I don't know if we will until this is over. But, definitely a lot of fun, and if we are fortunate enough to go on and win this thing, I think that play will be remembered for a long time.' Haliburton isn't celebrating yet. He'll have two days to rest and recover as best as he can. But come Sunday night, in the loudest environment in the NBA, Haliburton and the Pacers will once again be in a do-or-die situation. 'We've got one game. One game,' Haliburton said. 'Nothing that's happened before matters, and nothing that's going to happen after matters. It's all about that one game.'
