The Indiana Pacers have a convincing 2-0 lead over the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs, but the series is far from over. They are playing great basketball and have done a good job of executing their game plan and exploiting Milwaukee's biggest weaknesses, but they will travel on the road for Games 3 and 4. The Bucks have not lost a game at home in over a month and won each of their last four home games to end the season.
Things are looking good for Indiana, and they are in a good position to take a commanding 3-0 series and send the Bucks home early for the second consecutive season. However, there is still a lot of basketball left to be played. Ahead of Game 3, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers sent a notable message about his team that the Pacers cannot take lightly.
Doc Rivers made his feelings on the series crystal clear
Milwaukee is down 0-2 in the series, but Rivers has not lost his confidence. Before Game 3, Rivers made it clear that he is "very confident" about the Bucks' ability to win the series despite their deficit.
“We’ve gotten off to two poor starts, and we’ve got to make an adjustment there, for sure,” Rivers said. “We’ll just see. We have time. We have 48 hours. I’m not gonna tell you what I’m doing right now because I don’t know, but we’ll figure it out, I’m very confident about this series. Very.”
Despite the Bucks' top-heavy talent, they have struggled so far in their series against Indiana. They are not getting inspiring play from their role players, and it has already been established that they may not be able to match up with Indiana's speed and energy. However, even so, the series is not over yet, and it is not unprecedented for a team to overcome a 2-0 deficit in the playoffs, much like the Bucks did during the 2021 NBA Finals. The Pacers should feel good about where they are, but it is not the time for them to take their foot off the pedal.
Game 3 will be crucial for both teams. For Milwaukee, this may unofficially be their last chance to survive in this series and eliminate the Pacers as no team in league history has overcome a 3-0 series lead. As for the Pacers, a win in Game 3 would not only give them a commanding series lead, but it would also be a huge confidence boost for them to win their first road playoff game.
A lot is going right for the Pacers right now, and they will hope that this momentum can carry over into the rest of the playoffs. However, the Bucks have their backs against the wall, which is often when teams are at their most dangerous. The Pacers cannot lose sight of their end goal, and they must continue playing the style of basketball that got them to this point.