Hoops Rumors

Aaron Nesmith went to the NBA Finals in 2022, but in a much smaller role than he’ll have this year, writes Souichi Terada of MassLive. Nesmith was in his second NBA season when Boston faced Golden State three years ago, and he mostly made limited appearances in the playoffs. His career didn’t take off until he was traded to Indiana shortly after that series ended. Speaking at … [Read more...] about Pacers Notes: Nesmith, Haliburton, Bradley, Walker

Lloyd Pierce had a rough two-and-a-half seasons as a head coach with the Hawks from 2018-21. Pierce, now one of Rick Carlisle‘s top assistants with the Pacers, is hoping for another shot at being an NBA head coach, he told Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “I took a head coaching job and I learned a lot,” Pierce  said. “I want to be able to prove to myself. More than anything, I want … [Read more...] about Pacers Notes: Pierce, Haliburton, Flight, Defending SGA, Underdog Role

The Thunder and Pacers, this year’s NBA Finals squads, have provided a new roadmap for winning teams in the league, writes Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports. O’Connor argues that the three-and-D role player may not be enough anymore for the highest levels of basketball. As perhaps a next evolutionary step, both of these thoroughly modern clubs have built rosters loaded with … [Read more...] about NBA Finals Notes: Pacers, OKC, CBA, Sonics, Wallace

A blockbuster 2017 trade between the Thunder and Pacers helped set the stage for the 2025 NBA Finals, writes Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. On June 30 of that year, Oklahoma City agreed to send Domantas Sabonis and Victor Oladipo to Indiana in exchange for Paul George. None of those players will be playing in these NBA Finals, but George and Sabonis were later used to acquire … [Read more...] about NBA Finals Notes: Thunder, Pacers, MVPs, Market Size, More

The oddsmakers and bettors don’t believe the Pacers have much of a chance in the Finals against the Thunder. At BetMGM, the Pacers have +500 odds to win the championship, making them the biggest underdogs in the NBA Finals since the Cavaliers in 2018, Prince J. Grimes of the Indianapolis Star notes. The Warriors won those Finals in a sweep. In fact, the oddsmakers believe it … [Read more...] about Pacers Notes: Finals Odds, Siakam, Turnaround, Turner