ESPN analyst on Pacers: 'Last night made me feel like they could be a world championship team'
This starting to become habit.
The day after the Pacers flattened the Cavaliers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, ESPN's "First Take" gave Indiana credit where it's due.
When host Molly Qerim asked Brian Windhorst how important Donovan Mitchell's injury and status for Game 5 will be, Windhorst was quick to not focus on what Cleveland has or doesn't have — but what the Pacers have done.
'First off, I just want to say, the Pacers were absolutely brilliant in this game," Windhorst said. "And the Pacers since Jan. 1 are 41-16, which is the kind of winning a 59-win team would have. And so you look at this series and you say, 'One team is way better than the other team.' Actually there isn't that much difference between them, and the Pacers are playing great.
'The Pacers dominated the Cavs both physically and mentally and the Cavs are going to have go back and look at how they approached this game,' he added.
Stephen A. Smith said the Pacers earned his respect after winning Games 1 and 2 in Cleveland. He was equally impressed after Game 4.
"They destroyed Cleveland yesterday," Smith said. "They took their heart. That's how bad it looked. We've seen people get beat down before, just a bad night. That's not how this looked. This looked a lot worse than that. We've seen teams lose by 40. We ain't see them losing by 40 at the end of the first half — the first half. That's what we saw.'
While no one was really talking about the Pacers as a contender heading into the playoffs, a 3-1 lead over the top-seed Cavaliers is changing some minds.
'Last night made me feel like they could be a world championship team, for the first time, actually seeing it, I was like, 'OK,'" Jay Williams said. "But I think I'm more disappointed in Cleveland… Last night, that was embarrassing. That was embarrassing."
Game 5 is 7 p.m., Tuesday in Cleveland. And for the record, Pacers in 5 was at +2500 at the start of the series.
(All times ET; *-if necessary)
Game 1, May 4: Pacers 121, Cavaliers 112
Game 2, May 6: Pacers 120, Cavaliers 119
Game 3, Fri., May 9: Cavaliers 126, Pacers 104
Game 4, Sun., May 11: Pacers 129, Cavaliers 109
Game 5, Tues., May 13: at Cavaliers, 7 p.m., Tuesday
*-Game 6, Thurs., May 15: at Pacers, TBA
*-Game 7, Sun., May 18: at Cavaliers, TBA
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New York Times
36 minutes ago
- New York Times
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won't try to ‘reinvent the wheel' but he's rewriting NBA Finals history
OKLAHOMA CITY — Go ahead and join in on the silly chant if you so please. 'Freee-throoow merrrchaaant …' the Indiana Pacers faithful will likely boom at Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander when these NBA Finals relocate for Game 3 on Wednesday. Or, if history repeats itself, keep engaging in those silly online discussions about how the reigning MVP just isn't aesthetically pleasing enough to watch to warrant all the hype that surrounds him. Advertisement Those are fool's errands, to be sure. But for the vast majority of this season, in which the 26-year-old has been playing his way into the NBA annals, dazzling with his smooth style and misdirection magic while carrying this Thunder team that evened the finals with a 123-107 win in Game 2 on Sunday night, they've been happening nonetheless. Maybe the basketball-loving folks in the Hoosier State will surprise us all and break this disrespectful trend. As SGA's 34-point, eight-assist, five-rebound outing in the Thunder's revenge game reminded the masses, there's a drumbeat quality to his game that often undercuts the public's ability, or willingness, perhaps, to appreciate what he does. He gets to his spots, reads (and confuses) the defense, then makes the proper choice on whether to score or dish with an accuracy that is remarkable and unspectacular all at once. He doesn't soar through the air like Ja Morant or Anthony Edwards for the viral dunk or fill up the box score in quite the same fashion as the magnificent Nikola Jokić, but he has managed to end all of their seasons during this seven-week playoff stretch that is quietly on pace to be one of the best of all time. Not that his legion of haters has bothered to notice. Let's start with the micro. By scoring a combined 72 points in his first two NBA Finals games, Gilgeous-Alexander surpassed the great Allen Iverson (71 points) as the leader in that niche category. It's worth noting because there was some revealing criticism of his Game 1 performance, when he scored 38 points in the Thunder's jaw-dropping loss but had just three assists (while shooting 14 of 30 from the field). Everyone is fair game to scrutinize after a loss of that magnitude, and the fact that he missed his last two shots in the final 66 seconds was an understandable part of that discussion, but it's still mildly hilarious that any player could be deemed not good enough with a borderline 40-burger. Advertisement Now for the macro. Through 18 games, Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 30.8 points, 6.8 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals in these playoffs. You know how many guys have ever had a postseason like that, hitting those marks (30-6-5-1.8) during a playoff run in which they played at least 16 games? TWO. And you're probably familiar with their names. Michael Jordan (four times) and LeBron James (twice). That's the list — for now. That comes, of course, after Gilgeous-Alexander led the league in scoring during the regular season while leading the Thunder to a 68-14 mark, the No. 1-ranked defense and the league's best point differential of all time. So yeah, maybe it's time to stop with all the nitpicking and give this young man his flowers. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle certainly did after Game 2. '(With) Shai, you can mark down 34 points before they even get on the plane tomorrow for the next game,' he said. 'The guy's going to score. We've got to find ways to make it as tough as possible on him.' One might say that's a different way of deeming SGA unstoppable. Yet even with Carlisle's comment, it's notable that he wasn't asked a single question about Gilgeous-Alexander's performance. He shoehorned that insight into a question about the Thunder's offensive depth. On this night, like so many that have come before it, it was as if Gilgeous-Alexander's massive part in the Thunder win was such a given that it wasn't even worth discussing. But that consistency shouldn't be taken for granted. As these last two series have shown, there's a difference between a superstar like Gilgeous-Alexander, who shows out almost every single night, and the stars like Edwards and Tyrese Haliburton, who are more of a roller-coaster experience. Haliburton's incredible game winner in Game 1 disguised that he was largely ineffective leading up to that magical moment. Three nights later, with Lu Dort and Cason Wallace making him so miserable throughout, he was MIA when it mattered most (three points, three assists in the first half) before finishing with 17 points, six assists and five turnovers. Advertisement Two games in, here's how the battle of the point guards is sizing up … SGA: 36 points, 5.5 assists, 5.5 rebounds, 3.5 steals and two turnovers per game. Haliburton: 15.5 points, 6.0 assists, 6.5 rebounds, one steal and four turnovers per game. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault is the least shocked observer of them all. 'Yeah, unsurprising at this point,' he said afterward. 'It's just kind of what he does. He just continues to progress and improve and rise to every occasion that he puts himself in and that we put ourselves in. I thought his floor game tonight was really, really in a great rhythm. I thought everyone played better individually, and I thought we played better collectively. I think that was a byproduct.' For Gilgeous-Alexander's part, the (elite) work continues from here. Whether people are going to appreciate it or not. 'I'm being myself,' he said. 'I don't think I tried to reinvent the wheel or step up to the plate with a different mindset. Just try to attack the game the right way. I think I've done a pretty good job of that so far. Now, I would trade the points for two W's, for sure. But this is where our feet are. This is where we are. You can't go back in the past. You can only make the future better. That's what I'm focused on.' It was quite fitting that SGA made that statement while wearing his customary shades, for his future is indeed so bright that it's blinding. He wore a T-shirt that featured the late, great John Lennon as well. Just imagine the possibilities that lie ahead for him and these Thunder.
Indianapolis Star
an hour ago
- Indianapolis Star
First two games of NBA Finals showed Pacers' good and bad. They have one more weapon: Indy
OKLAHOMA CITY – Now, the terms are set. Each in a way as distinct as the two results, Games 1 and 2 of these NBA Finals have shown us the viable paths for Indiana and Oklahoma City to winning this year's NBA title. The one variable left to introduce — Indianapolis — enters the mix Wednesday night, after the Thunder's 123-107 win Sunday night effectively reduced this seven-game series to five. For those Thunder, Sunday unfolded according to the formula: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's brilliance lighting the game as his natural gravity simultaneously pulled his supporting cast into it, while Oklahoma City's exhausting defense made hard work of everything at the other end of the floor. Thunder-struck: No miracle comeback this time as OKC buries Pacers in Game 2 And for Indiana, Game 1 reminded a league expecting something akin to an OKC coronation that the Pacers are older, they are deeper, they are molded and polished by the sheer number of times they have stared failure in the face without flinching and, because of it, they live by one of sport's most important lessons: No game is over if you refuse to let it go. So much of what we believed about these two teams coming into this series was affirmed by these two games, precious little of it disproven. On a razor's edge, the series shifts to the corner of Maryland and Delaware, the Pacers with one more ace to play. 'Gainbridge,' Myles Turner said postgame Sunday, 'is gonna be rocking.' For all Indiana could celebrate Thursday what has become its trademark never-say-die character — the soul of this team now seemingly defined by its myriad unlikely comebacks — Sunday delivered a series of stiff reminders. Gilgeous-Alexander (34 points, eight assists) remains one of the league's least stoppable players. The Thunder have depth to burn themselves. And they did not finish with a league-best 68 regular-season wins by accident. That Indiana's slow start Thursday could largely be blamed on the Pacers' own mistakes was a quiet blessing. If you're the one digging your own holes, then you can still climb out of them. Sunday was not that. Sunday was not 20 first-half turnovers and frustratingly sloppy, but fixable, offense. Sunday was Oklahoma City at its dominant, championship best. 'They did a good job being disruptive,' Pascal Siakam said. 'They got out in transition. They made some tough shots. They've got guys that contributed across the board.' Gilgeous-Alexander made a visible effort to involve his teammates more immediately in Game 2, passing up early looks in favor of kickouts and skip passes. The result: He still scored 34, to accompany 38 in Game 1, but this time with help. Alex Caruso and Aaron Wiggins combined for 38 points off the bench, while Chet Holmgren finished with 15, and Jalen Williams 19. Indiana has found success in these playoffs living with an opponent's best player scoring in bunches, so long as he can't bring his complementary pieces into the game around him. The Pacers got a full dose of Thunder on Sunday. 'They were huge tonight,' Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said of his bench. And, for the second-straight game, Daigneault's defensive gameplan rendered Tyrese Haliburton human. Haliburton's 14 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in Game 1 were comfortably offset by his last-second heroics but, on Sunday, there would be no such sparkle. After draining a first-quarter 3 it looked like he might find him his rhythm, Haliburton went nearly two full frames without making a shot of any kind. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle deflected Haliburton-specific questions postgame, spreading responsibility among his entire team. Carlisle called the Pacers 'an ecosystem that has to function together,' and declared 'everybody's got to do more.' But Indiana will not be long for this series if its centerpiece star is so absent from the box score for such long stretches as Haliburton was Sunday. And Haliburton knows that. 'I've had two really poor first halves (this series),' said Haliburton, who found that offense in the fourth quarter and finished with a team-high 17 points. 'I've got to do a better job figuring out where I can be better.' This is the path Oklahoma City can open no previous opponent could. A way to win distinct to the Thunder on the Pacers' playoff journey. No one Indiana saw in the East can dictate with lineups, matchups, depth and size the flow of a game defensively the way Oklahoma City can. Collective versatility allows the Thunder to flash enough different kinds of defenses at Haliburton to keep him off balance. Daigneault's subtle shift back to more big lineups locked Indiana out of the paint Sunday. At their best, they are the best team in the NBA because they are the best defense in the NBA. The Pacers felt that to the tune of just 45 points and 20 turnovers in the first half of Game 1, before their prodigious 3-point shooting threat saved them in the second. There was no such rescue Sunday. Whether at the Paycom Center or Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indiana won't win this series without unpacking at least some of what Oklahoma City wants to make happen at the defensive end of the floor. 'Our offense is built from the inside out. We've got to do a better job getting downhill,' Haliburton said. 'It's a great defense. We can do a lot better job and watch the film, see where we can get better going into Game 3.' All of which should be said against the context of the Pacers' Game 1 win. Ultimately, the baseline job of any road team in the first weekend of a seven-game series is to grab at least one win. Take back homecourt advantage. Reset control of the series, at least for a time. Siakam acknowledged the Game 1 win didn't provide much 'consolation' after Game 2, but Game 1 did show us functionally how Indiana can beat this excellent Oklahoma City team. The same 3-point disparity the Pacers could not open up in Game 2 proved the foundation for a comeback in Game 1. Oklahoma City's depth shone so brightly on Sunday night in large part because it was rendered ineffective Thursday. And while the Thunder are still justifiable favorites in this series, Game 1 showed them what Milwaukee, Cleveland and New York already learned at great cost: The only way to know you've beaten these Pacers is to keep hammering until the clock hits zeroes. So, the series shifts. The Paycom Center was deafening for much of these first two games. After a quarter-century wait for another Finals appearance, the Pacers fly home firm in their belief theirs will be an equally intimidating atmosphere. 'Give credit where credit's due: This is a great playoff environment,' Turner said of Oklahoma City. 'I expect it to be a lot louder in Indianapolis. I know how long the city's been waiting for this Finals experience. They're gonna show up.' These first two games affirmed so much of what we believed about these teams' title credentials, and their respective paths to that end goal. Now, Indiana introduces a weapon that if not secret is certainly at very least dangerous. Game 3, Wednesday night. Indianapolis is waiting.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Guardians' meager offense: Kwan and José and then hope and pray
CLEVELAND — One afternoon in September 2013, Cleveland's pitchers roamed the outfield grass during batting practice. So, too, did a chicken. Depending on whom you ask, it was either Corey Kluber or Justin Masterson who decided to convert the outfield into fowl territory, the master plan to boost morale after a rough road trip that threatened the team's postseason chances. Advertisement The chicken, though, became part of the team's identity (and part of reliever Cody Allen's responsibilities. It also helped cement 'Chicken Al' as Allen's nickname). It sparked a 20-6 finish and a Wild Card berth, a momentous end to Terry Francona's first year at the helm. Anything can jump-start a turnaround. You just need the turnaround to unfold, and then you can go back and conveniently identify the turning point. It feels as though the 2025 Cleveland Guardians have been sitting back and waiting for a hot stretch to appear. If only it were that simple. Perhaps they need some poultry. Maybe the catalyst will be Will Wilson's sacrifice bunt attempt Sunday, a tapper that trickled halfway up the left side of the infield grass and, thanks to an error, resulted in a go-ahead run and Wilson's reaching second. The Guardians can't be picky about how they score. The sac bunt vaulted Cleveland to a series sweep-avoiding victory. The Guardians are 34-30, and yet, for much of the season, it's been an uninspiring brand of baseball to consume. The starting pitching is trending in the right direction. That's the strength of the team. The back end of the bullpen remains ever-reliable, too. But the offense … where do we begin? Let's start here: José Ramírez is a few months from turning 33 years old. Fortunately for the Guardians, he's showing no signs of slowing down. He boasts a .333/.392/.556 slash line, steals bases daily and has shaken off a rough few weeks defensively with what might be the best stretch of glovework of his career. However, one of the best position players in club history is starring for an offense that's on pace to finish at or below league average, in terms of run creation, for the seventh straight season. That's a lot of heavy lifting by the 5-foot-8 third baseman. It's a prolonged failure to construct a competent lineup around a guy who does everything exceptionally well. And this season's dud is perhaps the most head-scratching iteration. Nothing about this offense screams 'This team was one step away from the World Series eight months ago.' Here's where the Guardians ranked at various positions, by wRC+, entering play Sunday: (wRC+ measures a player or team's total offensive output relative to the rest of the league, with 100 being league average) Center field: 30th out of 30 teams (35 wRC+, miles behind 29th place) Right field: 29th out of 30 teams (42 wRC+, miles behind 28th place) Shortstop: 29th out of 30 teams (45 wRC+) Catcher: 24th out of 30 teams (73 wRC+) Advertisement These aren't new issues, by the way. Here's the club's production over the last 15 years: Center field: 29th out of 30 teams Right field: 26th out of 30 teams Catcher: 26th out of 30 teams (and 30th over the last 10 years) Their offensive identity might as well be 'Kwan and José and then hope and pray.' The Guardians rank second in offensive production at third base (Ramírez), left field (Steven Kwan) and second base, where Daniel Schneemann has been a savior. Cleveland ranks in the top half of the league in output at first base and designated hitter. So, truly, if the Guardians didn't have putrid production at all four of the other spots — if the production was even average, or slightly below — this lineup could be somewhat imposing. But, well, that hasn't happened, and the Guardians have been slow to act on their deficiencies. They finally swapped Jhonkensy Noel for Johnathan Rodriguez on Sunday, though manager Stephen Vogt cautioned Rodriguez still has some progress to make on swing changes he was implementing at Triple A. The Guardians have acknowledged they did Noel no favors by pigeonholing him into a platoon role during a lengthy stretch in which the club faced few left-handed pitchers. Noel's numbers were gruesome; since Sept. 3, 2024, including the postseason, he owns a .126/.169/.210 slash line, with 57 strikeouts in 167 at-bats. 'You feel like you have to go 5-for-4 every time you play,' Vogt said Sunday morning. 'It's one of those things that, you start to put pressure on yourself. We have conversations with our guys all the time about this. We do our best to keep them in a good mental headspace. But there's nothing that can help when you're struggling and you're down on yourself and you put more pressure on yourself to be perfect. It's a really tough role.' Advertisement And yet, they kept trotting him out there in that capacity. Noel and Nolan Jones seemed primed to, at minimum, hit for a bunch of power, but in 10 weeks as a right-field tandem, they totaled four homers. Their combined .257 slugging percentage would rank as the second worst for any qualified hitter in baseball. Among those with at least 100 plate appearances, Noel's wRC+ of 4 (meaning he's 96 percent worse than league average) is 18 percent worse than the league's second-worst hitter. Vogt has said, since taking the job, he loathes the word 'platoon,' but the Guardians sure are reliant on them. They lead the league in platoon advantage, 9 percent more than any other team. Perhaps they're too reliant on finding opposite-handed matchups. Maybe Schneemann or Kyle Manzardo or Jones deserves a chance against lefties, especially given the lack of enticing alternatives on the bench. All of the timeshares don't seem to be doing anyone favors. Schneemann, the 1,003rd pick of the draft in 2018, had reached a dead end at Double A 2 1/2 years ago before he overhauled his swing. Now, he's the one bright example from the organization's middle-infield stockpile. That's both a salute to Schneemann, who has rescued the Guardians on numerous occasions this season, and an indictment on the organization's continued struggle to develop hitters. Maybe the wildest part of all of this: The Guardians might not be that far off, in terms of American League relevance. The top teams in a wide-open AL seem to be the Detroit Tigers, the New York Yankees and the Houston Astros. The Guardians have hung with all three in recent weeks. They look like they're simply a couple of bats short. Those bats might have to come from the farm. They need to see what C.J. Kayfus and Chase DeLauter can provide. When Juan Brito is healthy, he should receive some attention, too. But the Guardians never should have positioned themselves to be banking on prospects making a midsummer arrival to bail out their lackluster lineup. They have a self-inflicted minuscule margin for error, not helped by a winter priority list that perplexingly included no means of upgrading the offense. Ramírez is, once again, performing like an MVP candidate. (Unfortunately for him, in a league where Aaron Judge is a pitcher-torching android.) But there's only so much one player can do. His production should be fueling a team that has obvious designs to push past where its season fizzled last fall. The Guardians reached the final four in October and wield one of the league's better farm systems. Right now, they're not enjoying the fruits of either. Vogt, of course, is confident a turnaround is on the horizon. Advertisement 'Our offense, we've struggled,' Vogt said over the weekend. 'We've struggled to score runs, especially early. We've done a great job getting to bullpens. We've struggled to score off starting pitching, and we're well aware of it. … We're still learning. We're still developing. I love where this offense is headed. We're headed in the right direction.' They might just be one live chicken away from making that a reality. (Top photo of Steven Kwan: Ken Blaze / Imagn Images)
