The Indiana Pacers headed into the NBA playoffs after having a breakout season, with Tyrese Haliburton turning into a legitimate star and the team having a bright future moving forward.
Haliburton and company were able to avoid the Play-In Tournament and secured the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference, which matched them up with the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round.
Although the Bucks were thought to be formidable foes in the postseason, they lost Giannis Antetokounmpo to a calf strain and Damian Lillard to a similar injury, making the path to the second round much easier for the upstart Pacers.
However, the Pacers were unable to end the Bucks’ season in Game 5, resulting in Milwaukee having a chance to even the series at three games with a win in Game 6.
With the series potentially shifting in the Bucks’ favor, Austin Rivers of ESPN believes Game 6 will be a “statement game” for Haliburton, via NBA on ESPN.
“I think it’s a statement game for him,” Rivers said.
“I think it’s a statement game for him.” @AustinRivers25 and the NBA Today crew think Game 6 vs. the Bucks will be the biggest game of Tyrese Haliburton’s career 👀 pic.twitter.com/SBxhVqmG8f
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 1, 2024
If the Pacers lose Game 6 against the Bucks, this first-round series will look completely different, with everything being on the line in Game 7 in Milwaukee.
Indiana has an ideal opportunity to take advantage of Milwaukee without their two superstars playing, but they have struggled to put them away, and losing to the Bucks at this point would be nothing short of embarrassing and a total disappointment for the Pacers.
They’ll have to lean on Haliburton, who hasn’t looked like the same player since about midseason, and also hope to get solid performances from Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner in order to advance to the second round.
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