The Indiana Pacers are in the conference finals for the second straight year, but it was not too long ago that they were a lottery team. Despite their new success, the Pacers cannot attribute much of that to the lottery. They have not had a top-five draft choice since Rik Smits in 1988, and they have had just three top-10 choices since drafting Paul George in 2010.
Indiana is proving that teams do not have to have great lottery luck to compete for a title, despite popular belief. With the NBA only becoming more competitive, teams will have to find different ways to contend for a championship. The Pacers are showcasing one of those ways, and it is the biggest reason they are going to be successful for the long haul.
The Pacers did not need the draft lottery to be successful
Indiana has only made two top-10 draft selections in the last 14 years. They drafted Bennedict Mathurin sixth overall in 2022 and Bilal Coulibaly (who they then traded to the Washington Wizards for Jarace Walker) seventh overall in 2023. Beyond these two players, the Pacers have mostly drafted in the middle of or late in the first round.
What makes Indiana's current run so impressive is that they never truly had a full-on rebuild like most teams do. They traded George in 2017, but they made the playoffs in each of the next three seasons. Indiana is in the spot they are in because of their ability to identify diamonds in the rough and get the most out of them. They have also made the right decision time and again over the last few years, and that is continuing to pay dividends for them.
The Pacers do not rely on having a "Big Three" or a top-heavy roster. They have built a team that has depth and quality and multiple positions, which is the way the modern NBA is trending. It remains to be seen how far this can take them, but so far, things look great for them.
Indiana has not made the NBA Finals since 2000, and they have never won an NBA title. The team is hoping for that trend to end this year, but even if it does not, they are still showing what is possible and how to contend in the league, and that is something that bodes well for them now and for the future.