Why these playoffs are so important for the youth movement of the Indiana Pacers
By Ryan Stano
The Indiana Pacers have to just win one of their two final games to make the playoffs and stay out of the play-in. They take on Cleveland and Atlanta in those games. It's expected that they will win at least one of those games, if not both with the way they are playing.
Seeding is still a mess in the Eastern Conference. There are too many different scenarios to list them all right now. What we do know is that in all likelihood, the Pacers will be in a 3/6 or a 4/5 matchup. No matter who they play, these playoffs are extremely important for the future of the team.
That future is extremely bright with the amount of young talent that this roster has on it. Tyrese Haliburton, Aaron Nesmith, and Andrew Nembhard are all just 24 years old and are all starters on this team. This will be the first playoff experience that they get together.
The Indiana Pacers will get valuable playoff experience
Those three players are foundational pieces for Indiana moving forward. Only Nesmith has experienced the playoffs before and that was when he was in Boston. The playoff experience will be much-needed for the other two guys, especially Haliburton.
We haven't mentioned Ben Sheppard yet, who is firmly in the rotation off the bench. This will be his first playoff experience as well. Jarace Walker might get some minutes depending on some foul trouble or injuries, so he might see some playoff action too.
Perhaps the most important member of the young bench players is Bennedict Mathurin isn't even playing in these playoffs because of his shoulder injury. He at least gets to be in the building and see what it feels like to experience playoff basketball from the bench.
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How these playoffs go will shape the future of the Indiana Pacers. Even if they get bounced in the first round, it will still be a valuable experience for this team to build on. Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner are the only two who have experienced playoff runs, and Siakam has a title. He'll be a valuable resource for this young team.