Of the four NBA conference finalists, the Indiana Pacers are, by far, the most surprising team remaining. There was a prevailing sentiment that Indiana was a nice regular season tem that lacked the defensive chops to make a deep run in the postseason.
They have defied those expectations to be at the 3-seeded Bucks and 2-seeded Knicks, but still aren’t being treated as a real threat. That’s largely due to beating two teams that were both dealing with significant injury issues, and now going up against a Celtics team that boasted the NBA’s best record in the regular season.
While Indiana’s defensive effort has impressed some, not everyone is sold on this Pacers team even with two series wins. Among them is Draymond Green, who was asked by his podcast producer if he felt he owed Indiana an apology for calling them an 82-game team, and instead doubled down and decided to bury the Eastern Conference in the process.
"I didn't think the Knicks was real, so somebody had to get there"
—@Money23Green isn't changing his stance on Pacers being an 82-game team pic.twitter.com/RneyRAqAJ7
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) May 20, 2024
Green certainly isn’t alone in thinking this, but it does come off as hating and the quote tweets and replies are largely reminding Green of the Warriors issues this season. This Indiana run does feel similar to the Hawks making it to the ECF a few years back as a surprise team in the East. The Pacers will get a chance to prove Green and the masses wrong when they tip off in Boston on Tuesday night for Game 1, as the world will need one more point of proof before the widespread perception of this team changes too much.
