A year ago, the Pacers were called “lucky.” They advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals by beating a Milwaukee team without Giannis Antetokounmpo and then a banged-up New York team (before falling to Boston).
Doing it two years in a row isn’t lucky — the Pacers are for real.
Cleveland came out in Game 5 Tuesday night playing with a sense of desperation and effort not seen from them often in this series — their backs were against the wall down 3-1, and the Cavaliers played like it, racing out to a 19-point second quarter lead.
However, sustaining that proved too much, especially with Darius Garland trying to play through turf toe and Donovan Mitchell battling injuries as well. Once again, Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers exposed the questionable switching defense of the Cavaliers, Haliburton hunted a slowed Garland, and Indiana found its rhythm. Cleveland could not get a stop when it needed it.
That wasn’t just Game 5 — Indiana has played with more energy and pace all series. The Pacers grabbed the rebounds, got to the loose balls and just outworked the Cavaliers. And, when it mattered, they hit the big shots. They did it again on Tuesday.
The result was a 114-105 Indiana win that gives them the series, 4-1.
The Pacers advance to the Eastern Conference Finals again and will face the winner of the Knicks vs. Celtics series, which New York leads 3-1 (and Boston will be without their leader Jayson Tatum).
“We’re not done. We still have a ways to go,” Haliburton said.
Haliburton turned the game around with his scoring and shot creation, finishing with 31 points and eight assists.
Haliburton had LeBron James sticking up for him after a player survey named him the most overrated player in the league.
Hali fkn hooping!!!! Where the lames who said he was overrated??!! Quiet as hell. That boy NICE and even more someone everyone would love to play with! 🧠 🏀 @mindthegamepod
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 14, 2025
Also deserving credit in this series is Myles Turner, who got labeled by some as a 3-point shooting big who was soft inside, but he has played with more force and physicality over the past couple of years. In this series, going up against Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, he was the best big on the floor most nights.
Cleveland has some hard questions to answer.
“We didn’t get to the level we wanted to get to,” Coach Kenny Atkinson said. “We’re not pleased with that and we’re not celebrating the season.”
Injuries certainly were a part of the problem for Cleveland, this was a banged up team. However, the issues ran deeper than that. The Cavaliers executed poorly all series under pressure.
More concerning, Cleveland got outworked. Down 2-1 in the series, the Cavs no-showed in Game 4. This team lacked playoff grit.
Not Donovan Mitchell, who gutted his way to 35 points but shot just 8-of-25. Evan Mobley scored 24 on 8-of-12 shooting with 11 rebounds. But the bench players that carried them this season, De’Andre Hunter and Ty Jerome, had a rough series. So did Allen. And Max Strus was 0-of-9 shooting in Game 5.
With the Celtics not having Jayson Tatum next season, and the Bucks potentially trading Giannis Antetokounmpo, the temptation is to say the Cavaliers should make tweaks around the edges but run back their 64-win team and bet on better playoff health next season. However, the second tax apron is about to hit the Cavaliers and keeping guys like Jerome and Hunter may prove difficult. This may be a thinner Cavaliers roster next season, but there are reasons for hope.
Just know Indiana will be back next season with its core, too, and that team is for real.
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