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Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Draymond Green Makes Tyrese Haliburton Statement Before NBA Finals
Draymond Green Makes Tyrese Haliburton Statement Before NBA Finals originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Indiana Pacers are going to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000 after defeating the New York Knicks in a tough-fought Eastern Conference Finals. Advertisement There, they'll face off against the league's Most Valuable Player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder made relatively light work of the Minnesota Timberwolves, defeating them 4-1 in the Western Conference Finals. For the Thunder, it's their first trip to the NBA Finals since 2012, when they fell to the LeBron James-led Miami Heat. Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green© Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images Draymond Green makes Tyrese Haliburton statement before NBA Finals The Golden State Warriors had NBA Finals aspirations, but an injury to Stephen Curry in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves derailed them. Advertisement The Warriors had been playing do-or-die basketball essentially since they traded for Jimmy Butler. The quick turnaround from their series with the Houston Rockets to the Western Conference semifinals could be to blame. With the Warriors eliminated, Draymond Green has been watching Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers and has been impressed with what he's seen. "They give him so much space... They don't realize he's surgical with it," Green said. "Hali's handle is very underrated and sneaky." While Pascal Siakam took home the Larry Bird Trophy for the Eastern Conference Finals MVP, Haliburton has been an integral part of what the Pacers have accomplished in these playoffs. Advertisement During the Conference Finals, Haliburton was second in points and first in rebounds, assists, steals and 3-pointers made. The Pacers will face their toughest opponent yet, as the Thunder finished with the best record in the NBA during the regular season and has coasted in these playoffs outside of their semifinals series against the Denver Nuggets. Oklahoma City is the overwhelming favorite at -700, which is an implied probability of 87.5%. The Pacers are accustomed to being underdogs, having faced off against the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks in their recent series. This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Indianapolis Star
3 days ago
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Inside Pacers' unconventional path back to NBA Finals: 'I think it's a new blueprint for the league'
INDIANAPOLIS – They made sure Myles Turner got the microphone first. Between the time the buzzer sounded on the Pacers' 125-108 series-clinching win over the Knicks in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals and the official trophy ceremony on TNT, Pacers radio network sideline reporter Pat Boylan got to interview a player as he always does for broadcast on the center court video boards after every Pacers win. Boylan picked the longest-tenured Pacer so Turner could start with his trademark call-and-response with the Gainbridge Fieldhouse faithful, who were overjoyed with their first berth in the NBA Finals since 2000. "INNN-DYYY" Turner sang out with even more bass and volume in his voice than usual. "AAAAA-NNNNAAAA" they hollered back loud enough Turner decided he had to do it a second time. When the Bob Cousy Trophy for the Eastern Conference Finals came out, the Pacers let the 6-11 Turner hold it high first. After handing the Larry Bird Trophy to Pascal Siakam as the Eastern Conference Finals MVP, TNT's Ernie Johnson called Turner in front of the group to speak to what it meant to finally go to the NBA Finals for the first time in his 10-year career. Because Turner more than anyone knew what it took for the Pacers to make it back for just the second time since they left the ABA for the NBA in 1976. He wasn't part of the last Pacers squad to reach back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals in 2013 and 2014, but he was there when the remaining pieces of that squad disintegrated and Paul George requested a trade. He was there for the Victor Oladipo-led resurgence, but then he was also there when Oladipo ruptured his quadriceps, an injury from which his career never fully recovered. Turner saw the ends of the coaching tenures of Frank Vogel, Nate McMillan and Nate Bjorkgren. And when the Pacers started making moves to overturn the roster toward the end of Rick Carlisle's first year, Turner began to think it was a matter of time before he was sent out the door. But instead the Pacers stuck with him and made him a pillar of their rebuild, and in the course of a little under three years turned a 25-win lottery team into an Eastern Conference champion. Turner noted to the crowd the Pacers want "four more" against the Oklahoma City Thunder with whom they begin NBA Finals in Game 1 on Thursday at Oklahoma City, but when the buzzer sounded he allowed himself to feel the wave of all the emotions that have defined his past decade. "It was nothing but joy, man," Turner said after spending time talking to everyone from the franchise's matriarch in Nancy Leonard to it's all-time greatest player in Reggie Miller to team trainers and massage therapists. "It was pure excitement, pure validation. All the years, all the hate, all the love, everything in between, bro, it just made so much sense in that moment." And in that moment, everything the Pacers have done since February of 2022 made sense as well. That was when they decided to flip the roster and start over, but they didn't take what has become the conventional approach of using a firesale to rip a team down to the studs and betting their entire future just on draft picks. They decided instead to trade one young rising star in Domantas Sabonis for another in point guard Tyrese Haliburton — with several other pieces of varying levels of importance also changing hands — and immediately made Haliburton their cornerstone and building the team in his image. With him in place they managed to dramatically accelerate their timeline by settling on an identity without having to wait for rookies to mature. "If you have the right player to build around, it can happen much faster than you think," Carlisle said. "Getting Tyrese made it very clear what our identity as a team needed to be. We needed to be a fast-paced team with shooting." They also needed to be a team with personalities that meshed because having Haliburton as the centerpiece meant building around hyperactivity and constant ball movement and unselfishness that could easily be derailed if personal agendas overtook the team concept. But every move they made seemed to only add to the team dynamic. That level of camaraderie was a big reason why now three-time All-Star Pascal Siakam had interest in being traded from the Raptors to the Pacers in the first place and why after the Raptors dealt him to Indiana in January of 2024, he happily re-signed last summer for four more years. "Every single person on this team is just an amazing person," Siakam said. "I mean, it's just a bunch of good guys. When you have that and everyone is committed to the work and there's no selfishness and it's all about winning, that's what you want to have. I think just for me seeing that, outside of the talent that we have, I know how connected we are and another thing is we're just resilient. We won't stop. We won't stop. And when there's bad games or whatever the case may be, we're still gonna be here." The Pacers' combination of connectivity and offensive firepower made them a tougher-than-expected out in 2022-23 when they won 35 games and it made them a league darling when they caught fire to start the 2023-24 season and earned a berth in the finals of the inaugural In-Season Tournament. But it became very clear — especially when they won a game over the Hawks 157-152 in group play of that tournament — they were relying too much on their offense to carry them. They finished last season as the No. 6 highest scoring team in NBA history and the highest-scoring team in the league's past 50 years with 123.3 points per game but they were near rock bottom in the league in the most important defensive categories through the early going. But a lineup change on Dec. 26 of that year announced an increased commitment to defense. The addition of Siakam in January gave them a long-armed big wing they desperately needed to deal with bigger and more athletic power forwards and over time they determined they could use full-court pressure and lean into their depth to make up for their lack of overall size and their lack of consistency in rebounding. After finishing 24th in the NBA last season in defensive rating they moved up to 14th this year with the seventh-best mark since Dec. 8 when they started 10-15. "Our defense is something we've been working on steadfastly for over a year and a half," Carlisle said. "I mean really. The year started last year with really a different set of rules. We were playing small and even faster. It wasn't a team that had great defenders but we've gotten better defenders. We've gotten bigger. We got Pascal and the guys co-signed on the importance of defense and everybody has participated in the growth." And in Game 6 it was their defense that was the driving force in their win. In Indiana's loss in Game 5, the Knicks made it difficult to create any sort of pace and offensive flow and the Pacers scored just 94 points, their lowest in this year's playoffs. But the Knicks couldn't make that happen again on Saturday as the Pacers caused 18 turnovers with 10 of them being steals. They turned those 18 turnovers into 34 points — a remarkable conversion rate — and they posted 25 fast-break points. Siakam scored 31 points in large part because he was running ahead of the play after some of those turnovers. Guard Andrew Nembhard — who was switched on to Knicks star guard Jalen Brunson early in the game — grabbed six steals on his own with his ball pressure. He posted 14 points and eight assists and was +25 in his time on the floor. "The buy-in from our whole group has been huge," Haliburton said. "Last year, all that was being said was that we couldn't win because we don't guard anybody and all we try to do is outscore people. I think we've taken such a big step on the defensive end as a group. I think Andrew, Aaron (Nesmith) and Myles kinda lead that and me and P (Siakam) are trying to follow their lead and get it going on that side of the ball and our bench guys just come in and bring more energy. The step we made on that side of the ball is why we're here." The league has already taken notice of the fact that in the Pacers and Thunder, there are two small market teams in the NBA Finals who built their squads through youth and cohesion and without much in the way of flashy free agent signings or blockbuster trades. Neither team is completely homegrown — Haliburton, Siakam and Oklahoma City MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander were all acquired in trades — but there's still been an organic nature to their roster construction and the quick creation of chemistry has helped both teams grow up quickly. "I think it's a new blueprint for the league, man," Turner said. "I think the years of the superteams and stacking, it's not as effective as it once was. Since I've been in the league, this NBA is very trendy. It just shifts. The new trend is what we're doing. OKC does the same thing. Young guys get out and run, defend and use the power of friendship is how they call it." The Pacers recognize, however, the front office and organization had to fight against the grain at times to believe their blueprint was the correct one. The Siakam trade last year didn't cost them much in the way of then-current players — they sent guard Bruce Brown and forward Jordan Nwora to Toronto — but they sent three first-round draft picks Toronto's way which sent a signal the Pacers intended to win immediately instead of waiting in hopes future assets would line up to create their championship window. That could have backfired if Siakam had decided to go elsewhere when his contract ran out. The Pacers also could have responded to last year's Eastern Conference Finals loss to the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics — the closest team to a superteam in the Eastern Conference and perhaps in the NBA in the past two seasons — by making desperate moves to climb up to their level. Instead they mostly stood pat with their biggest additions since the Siakam trade mostly being depth centers Thomas Bryant and Tony Bradley, who were acquired after backups James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson tore their Achilles tendons in the season's first week. "I'm thankful that our front office believed in this group, to keep us together, to not do a crazy roster turnover, to keep this group together," Haliburton said, "and see something in ourselves that 'experts' didn't see."
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Pacers beat Knicks to reach NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history
Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton made sure the Indiana Pacers gave their fans a celebration they waited 25 years to see again. Siakam had 31 points and Haliburton scored 11 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, carrying the Pacers to a 125-108 victory over the New York Knicks on Saturday night for a 4-2 series win and their first trip to the NBA Finals since 2000. It's just the second time in franchise history that they'll play for the championship. The series begins on Thursday in Oklahoma City. 'Pascal and Tyrese put us on their backs and made sure we would not lose,' coach Rick Carlisle told the gold-clad crowd that was on its feet for the waning minutes and the postgame party. 'But our work has just begun.' Siakam won the Larry Bird Trophy as the Eastern Conference finals MVP. Bird is the only other coach to take the Pacers to the Finals. Haliburton finished with 13 assists and Obi Toppin added 18 points and six rebounds against his former team. OG Anunoby led the Knicks with 24 points. Karl-Anthony Towns had 22 points and 14 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson added 19 points as the Pacers' relentless ball pressure forced New York into 17 turnovers. 'There were stretches where we played very good defense and stretches where we didn't,' Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. 'I think once you dig into it and you look at is, was it our defense? Or was it our turnovers? I think it was probably a combination of both.' Whatever the explanation, the Knicks are headed home again courtesy of the Pacers. New York still hasn't played in the finals since 1999. It was a magical night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse — from the festive pregame atmosphere through the roaring ovation for the starters as they departed with 47.2 seconds to go to Reggie Miller's presentation of the Eastern Conference's Bob Cousy Trophy to Pacers owner Herb Simon on TNT's final NBA broadcast. Miller was one of the telecast's colour analysts. And yet, it was a tough, physical game that didn't always follow the Pacers' preferred style. Whether it was Towns limping after drawing a foul or Haliburton holding his jaw when he took a shot that knocked him to the ground, the tone was set early — and never really changed with so much at stake. Indiana finally broke open a close game by opening the second half on a 9-0 run, then extended their lead to 78-63 courtesy of three straight 3-pointers — two from Thomas Bryant and one from Andrew Nembhard. The run ignited the crowd, which included everyone from Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson to WNBA star Caitlin Clark to Timothee Chalamet to Kylie Jenner. But when the Knicks answered with eight straight to cut the deficit to 78-71, the Pacers responded with another 9-0 run to take their biggest lead of the game and the Knicks were forced to play catch-up the rest of the night. 'This is no time to be popping champagne,' said Carlisle, who won the 2011 title as coach of the Dallas Mavericks. 'When you get to this point of the season, it's two teams and it's one goal. So it becomes an all or nothing thing and we understand the magnitude of it.'
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Pascal Siakam, Indiana Pacers knock out New York Knicks in Eastern Conference finals
Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam lifting the Larry Bird Trophy after recording 31 points and three blocked shots in Game 6 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals. It was his third 30-point outing of the series, which the Pacers won 4-2 after a 125-108 triumph at Gainbridge Fieldhous in Indianapolis on May 31. PHOTO: EPA-EFE Indianapolis – Pascal Siakam already owns one National Basketball Association (NBA) championship ring and he now has a chance to win another. Siakam was the biggest hero as the Indiana Pacers earned their first NBA Finals appearance since 2000 with a solid 125-108 victory over the visiting New York Knicks in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals on May 31 in Indianapolis. Siakam recorded 31 points and three blocked shots to finish off a stellar series in which he was named Most Valuable Player of the series. He was 10-of-18 shooting while notching his third 30-point outing of the series. 'So deserving,' Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said of Siakam after the 4-2 series win. 'The guy has been a rock of consistency all year.' Indiana will face Western Conference champions the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals. Game 1 is on June 5 in Oklahoma City. Siakam, a nine-year veteran, won a title in 2019 with the Toronto Raptors. Now he will be the guy fielding questions from his teammates about what to expect. 'That year was my third year, I was this young kid. I thought it was going to be easy (to get back),' Siakam said. 'I appreciate it even more now because I know how hard it is to get here.' Tyrese Haliburton added 21 points, 13 assists and three steals for fourth-seeded Indiana. Obi Toppin added 18 points off the bench and Andrew Nembhard had 14 points and six steals for the Pacers. 'It's a special feeling to do it with this group,' Haliburton said. 'We got to the same spot last year and we fell short. We worked our tails off to get back here.' O.G. Anunoby scored 24 points and Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points and 14 rebounds for third-seeded New York. Jalen Brunson had 19 points and seven assists and Mikal Bridges had 15 points for the Knicks. Indiana had a 25-10 edge on fastbreak points to finish the series with a dominating advantage 106-48 in that category. New York committed 18 turnovers in the finale, including five apiece by Brunson and Bridges. 'I saw a lot of breakaways on their part,' Brunson said. 'It was the reason why they would extend the lead throughout the series. It's something I have to be able to control... It's terrible on my part.' The Pacers shot 54.1 per cent from the field, including a solid 17 of 33 from three-point range (51.5 per cent). Myles Turner and reserve Thomas Bryant had 11 points apiece and Aaron Nesmith added 10 for the Pacers. New York made 47.7 per cent of their shots and were nine of 32 (28.1 per cent) from behind the arc. Landry Shamet had 12 points on four treys off the bench. It was the first appearance in the Eastern Conference finals for the Knicks since 2000 when they also lost to the Pacers. 'I'm proud of what these guys did,' Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. 'There was a lot that we had to get through and I thought we handled that part well. 'The play-offs are hard-fought and these games can go either way. There's the disappointment of falling short of the ultimate goal but still proud of what we accomplished.' REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Why was Eastern Conference Finals MVP named Larry Bird Trophy? What we know about the award Pascal Siakam hoisted
Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam was named the Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player, scoring 31 points in the Pacers' Game 6 victory over the New York Knicks. Averaging 24.8 points on 52.4% shooting (50% from 3) in the series, Siakam edged teammate Tyrese Haliburton for the award five votes to four. Pacers fans cheered as Siakam hoisted the Larry Bird Trophy. Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) reacts after receiving the Larry Bird MVP Trophy after game six of the eastern conference finals against the New York Knicks for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. (Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images)(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect) {{^userSubscribed}} {{^usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{#usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{/userSubscribed}} {{^userSubscribed}} {{^usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{#usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{/userSubscribed}} The NBA annually honors the most valuable players (MVPs) of both of its conference finals. The Larry Bird Trophy is awarded to the MVP from the Eastern Conference. Why was the Eastern Conference Finals MVP named the Larry Bird Trophy? {{^usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{^usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} The Eastern Conference Finals MVP is called the Larry Bird Trophy to honor Hall of Fame player Larry Bird, who made his NBA debut in 1979. Back in 2022, Bird's great influence on the game of basketball went on to cross a new threshold when the NBA named the trophy in his honor. Notably, the award's Western Conference counterpart was named after Lakers icon Magic Johnson, Bird's best friend and rival. At the time the award's name was unveiled, Bird expressed his gratitude upon hearing the news from NBA Deputy Commissioner and COO Mark Tatum. 'Well, thanks Mark. I just wish I could win one of them Magic Johnson trophies. That'd be a highlight of my career,' Bird said, before laughing. {{^userSubscribed}} {{^usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{#usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{/userSubscribed}} {{^userSubscribed}} {{^usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{#usCountry}} {{/usCountry}} {{/userSubscribed}} {{^usCountry}} Meanwhile, Siakam was elated after his recent victory. "Shoutout Indy, man," he said on the TNT broadcast after receiving the award. 'It's been such an amazing experience for me so far. From the first day I landed here, the love has been amazing. Just unbelievable, man. First-class organization. I'm just so happy to be here. And tonight, after a bad Game 5, we wanted to bounce back. I have, like, 100% belief in my teammates. Whenever we're down, we always find a way. And we did that tonight.' {{/usCountry}} {{#usCountry}} Meanwhile, Siakam was elated after his recent victory. "Shoutout Indy, man," he said on the TNT broadcast after receiving the award. 'It's been such an amazing experience for me so far. From the first day I landed here, the love has been amazing. Just unbelievable, man. First-class organization. I'm just so happy to be here. And tonight, after a bad Game 5, we wanted to bounce back. I have, like, 100% belief in my teammates. Whenever we're down, we always find a way. And we did that tonight.' {{/usCountry}} SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
