Not only will the Indiana Pacers get a big boost when Tyrese Haliburton returns from his Achilles injury next season, but it might be easier for them to re-establish themselves as title contenders, given that they don't have a lot of competition in the Eastern Conference.
The Pacers were in each of the last two conference finals and were one win away from winning an NBA championship last year. And, even with Haliburton missing all of this season, their outlook for the future is still incredibly bright.
Next season, the Pacers should get their star guard back, and they will be ready to finish what they started last year. Regardless of what went down this season, they were going to be in a good spot for the foreseeable future. But in a strange way, this season has almost been a big reassurance to Indiana, and that is something the team can't ignore moving forward.
The Pacers still don't have a lot of competition in the East
Let's go down the list, shall we?
The No. 1 seed Detroit Pistons, all credit to them, have exceeded everybody's expectations this season (even the die-hard fans). They have been a legitimate force defensively all year, Cade Cunningham had a season worthy of MVP consideration (though the 65-game rule says otherwise), Jalen Duren made a huge jump, and they have just been incredible all season.
Yet, nobody's truly scared of them, and the Pacers shouldn't be either.
Detroit has been fantastic, don't get it twisted. But there are legitimate concerns about the team's ability to generate offense without or next to Cunningham (Daniss Jenkins has been great in the 24-year-old's absence, but it's going to be tougher for him to keep up in a playoff series). Plus, their 35.4 3FG% ranks 21st in the league, according to NBA.com.
Great story. Great season. But the Pacers shouldn't be scared.
The Boston Celtics... we can skip. Should the Pacers be scared of them? Probably not, especially after the 2024 conference finals. But they were looking like legitimate threats even before Jayson Tatum returned from his injury, and they're likely only going to get better from here. They are the only exception.
The New York Knicks have been up and down all season, and it's culminated in them (in all likelihood) ending the season as the No. 3 seed. Not only did Indiana send them packing in each of the last two seasons, but the Knicks are wildly inconsistent on both sides of the ball, are just 22-19 on the road this season, their offense can be stagnant, and their depth remains a big concern.
On paper, the Knicks are incredibly talented. But the Pacers have had their number in recent years, and especially if we don't know what version of them we're going to see, they should feel confident against them.
As for the Cleveland Cavaliers, they're another great team that the Pacers sent home in last year's playoffs. And while things have looked good since they traded for James Harden (19-8 record since his team debut), we can't ignore that they're a team that is known to fold under pressure.
And then everybody else is pretty self-explanatory, but ask me again in a year or two, and I may have some legitimate thoughts on the Charlotte Hornets.
The Pacers should be in a great spot moving forward
Indiana has a bright future with a talented roster, an elite coaching staff and front office, and a well-known system that teams still haven't figured out how to replicate or eliminate. The Pacers are going to be real title contenders for years to come, and being in a conference as wide-open as this Eastern Conference is should only pay dividends for a long time.