On Sunday night, the Indiana Pacers' magical season ended in tragedy. Not only did they lose Game 7 (and the NBA Championship) to the Oklahoma City Thunder, but star guard Tyrese Haliburton suffered an Achilles injury that puts his status for next season in doubt. Haliburton's injury is brutal and incredibly unfortunate. Even so, they had one of the most impressive and fun campaigns of any NBA team in recent history, and nobody can take that away.
Nobody expected the Pacers to make it this far. However, no matter how it gets looked at, they made a conference finals appearance in back-to-back years, and they took the best team in the NBA to a Game 7 in the NBA Finals.
Things look grim in Indiana, but there is reason to believe that the team will make it back and have their place in history soon enough.
The Pacers have what it takes to compete for a long time
Losing Haliburton for potentially all of next season is a tough blow for the Pacers, but it is just a temporary setback for a team that has built a reputation for never giving up and always defying the odds. Whether they will make it back to the NBA Finals next year remains to be seen, but the Pacers can compete even without their star guard.
The Pacers will have a lot of big decisions to make in the offseason, and that is even more true with Haliburton's injury. They must make a decision on Myles Turner, who is an unrestricted free agent and played horribly in the Finals. Additionally, Bennedict Mathurin is eligible for a contract extension, and the team will have to decide what is next for his future in Indiana. And in a sudden twist of events, the Pacers now have to decide who their starting point guard will be for next season: Andrew Nembhard, T.J. McConnell, or an external option, most likely.
There is no doubt that the odds are stacked against the Pacers, but there is reason to be optimistic about the future. They have a good team and should remain in the playoff picture next year, and Haliburton, who just turned 25 in February, should be able to provide a big boost and bring the Pacers right back to where they were once he returns.
The season ended on a sour note for the Pacers, no question about it, but it is safe to assume they should not be counted out just yet.