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PrimaryAccording9162

Portis masterclass tonight


edge-hog

Giannis, Achilles and Portis.


stoney021

We already have AJax and a Greek God, you saying we get Achilles now too?


computer_love91

Yep brad pitt is gonna suit up for the bucks and dunk on Myles turner like he stabbed that one giant dude and then turn to the pacers bench and scream "is there no one else?"


savageandharsh

Doc Rivers salivating about changing his reputation.


playmaykr7

hide Nikola Mirotic


ImTheBestNerd

If the pacers blow a 3-1 lead because they couldn't guard Patrick Beverley conversations need to be had


altofalco

Unironically asking, what conversations?


K1ngCrimsn

Is Haliburton that guy? Is Siakam worth $50m? Is Carlisle washed? Is Pat Bev the mayor of Indiana?


itsmeng

Siakam is worth. Haliburton needs to show up tonight! If he does, you know Pat Bev will claim he lit that fire in Hali.


TurtleIIX

Wouldn’t be a false statement. Edit: Pat Bev is a bitch.


TFTisbetterthanLoL

Hali is clearly a regular season merchant and isn’t a half court player at ALL


Shmoopy65

Pretty insane to say that after 1 playoff series lmfao


WooPigEsquire

Pacers were #2 in half court offense rating this year Edit: And they’ve been #2 in half court offense these playoffs also per [cleaning the glass.](https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/league/context#tab-offense_halfcourt_putbacks)


TFTisbetterthanLoL

Hmm what did I just say? REGULAR SEASON merchant.


WooPigEsquire

What did I say? Also in the playoffs.


RZAAMRIINF

Do you expect Pacers to blow it up 3 months after trading for Siakam? Siakam is a max player, far worse players than him get max every year. If Pacers don’t offer him the max someone else will. A normal max is pretty fair value for Pascal.


kickit

we've gone from 25 to 35 to 47 wins in 3 seasons and they think we should blow it up over our very first playoff series 🤣 obviously I'd love to see us win, but this is not the 76ers or Suns we're talking about. we're a rising team with untapped potential getting our first taste of playoff experience. win or lose, this has been a good year for us


Skywalkerkid9

Keep my shitty team’s name out your fucking mouth


kickit

hey man I love watching the Sixers & hope y'all beat the Knicks I'm just saying you've been around, had some playoff runs, so when shit happens (as it often does) the team makes moves


pfqq

Hey I'm more excited for your game tonight than ours. That's because ours terrifies me.


DsamD11

People get ridiculous as soon as it comes play off time. It's honestly wild to see. If you just assume everything in this sub is either a piss take or made by idiotic children then you can go through it much easier


Both_Funny4896

could Siakam just chose to leave or is he restricted?


Dangelo1998

He's like 30 years old so no restrictions, but I imagine they'll agree to a deal


Both_Funny4896

Yea same I was just curious if that was a possibility. It would definitely catch me off guard if he chose a different direction


luviro

You have to understand that the last two seasons, the Pacers won 25 and 35 games. We are on a fantastic trajectory with a ton of young talent, while we’re still figuring out Siakam’s fit and while Haliburton is clearly injured. So, sure, you can say there are conversations to be had lol, but this season is a success no matter what. 47 wins, brought in a star player through a trade, our third option (Mathurin) out for the season, and lots of young guys who have looked incredible or at least promising (Mathurin, Nembhard, Jarace Walker, Ben Shepherd).


XzibitABC

Couldn't agree more. Blowing a 3-1 lead to a struggling and hurt Bucks team would suck incredibly hard, but most projections had us missing the playoffs or being a 9-10 in the play-in. Our core outside of Siakam is incredibly young, and we're ahead of schedule. Conversations would certainly need to be had, but they should have more to do with our systems. Does our high-paced offense translate to the playoffs? Do we need to run different actions to set up Pascal outside of ISO scenarios? Who can replace Buddy Hield as a movement shooter? And should we introduce more switching and helping back into our struggling defense?


Neuroxex

There is almost never a good playoff team that doesn't go through a 'What the fuck were they doing?' stage or year early in their playoff history. I feel weird saying it because I am very much **not** assuming the Bucks will win the next two just because they might have some version of Giannis/Dame back, re-integrating without losing a single game will be extremely difficult. But yeah it would stink and yeah it wouldn't reflect super well on this Pacers team this year, but no-one gets a smooth journey in the NBA.


XzibitABC

Agree across the board. I think the Pacers still most likely close the series out tonight, but even if they choke the series away against a Bucks team that doesn't even get Giannis/Dame back, that doesn't mean the Pacers aren't still a young team loaded with talent who just has some stuff to figure out. It's not like we were going to win the title this year in any universe anyway.


Neuroxex

Kind of where I'm at. Been pretty vocal in finding the Pacers very disappointing/lacking compared to, at least, my expectations these playoffs - but ultimately it doesn't mean anything more than them having to learn some stuff. Look at the difference in composure/seriousness between the Timberwolves first round in 2022 and now, they looked completely incapable in that series and now we're talking about them as a team that could be in the Finals.


couchtomato62

Nah one playoff is too soon for any questions.


altofalco

Yeah those would all be fair questions if they do blow a 3-1 lead, doesn’t look good for anyone. Fairly harsh on Hali tho, not everyones great on their first run but if they do lose 3 straight he warrants the criticism 


FartrelCluggins

Haliburton definitely needs to get heat if they lose to this bucks roster. We've all heard about how he's playing injured but he returned from said injury literal months ago. That excuse will not fly if he can't beat a crippled bucks team


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OldSweepy

It’s not a bonus in his contract. Making all NBA (regardless of which tier) increases the maximum allowed size of his next contract. This is not unique to him or Indiana, but he is notable for being the first case of someone obviously coming back from an injury too soon because of the new games played requirement.


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trinquin

NBA needs injury arbitration for this type of case.


drj123

If that’s honestly true, and he’s still actually hurt more than his back spasms which is new, the Indiana S&C team really fucked up letting him go out there


TheMias24

Yeah it feels like he’s not been the same since. I don’t watch many Pacers games honestly, but it seems like his game has regressed a ton. I think part of it is that they picked up Siakam and he defers to him for scoring too.


XzibitABC

His shooting numbers cratered after the injury and he visibly hasn't been able to get by guys the same way. You're right on the deferring though, he does that to more than even just Siakam (like TJ McConnell lol).


TheMias24

Yeah it felt like he was getting 30 and 10 games every week, and I haven’t seen one of those in what feels like forever. It’s a shame he forced himself to hit the 65 game minimum and rush back, at his best this Pacers team could do some serious work.


Troll_Enthusiast

Have you ever had an injury before? there can be lingering issues


altofalco

For sure, hammy injuries can be tricky to deal with but the drop has been precipitous. I’ve been critical myself of his play recently, and if he was really that impaired he should’ve just sat out longer. That being said, I do think both extremes are getting a bit insane; he might not be the 25/12 guy at the beginning of the season, at least right now, or the 16/8 guys he’s been in the second half, but overall his tenure here has been like 20/10 on 50/40/85, which I’m more inclined to believe is indicative of his play going forward than right now. 


scarywolverine

If hes the middle ground you need to find the guy you thought he was though. 20/10 guy is a number 2


drjisftw

Harden struggled with a hamstring injury when he was in Philly - did he get similar levels of heat?


FartrelCluggins

Are you kidding me? He got a ton of slander. Haliburton is still a baby who hasn't made any enemies yet so no one has said anything


XzibitABC

There were literally multiple front page threads *yesterday* of Pat Bev shitting on Haliburton, there were multiple threads of Haliburton's stat line after Game 1, and there were multiple threads toward the tail end of the regular season asking if Haliburton's "Linsanity run" was over. I agree that he's not getting as much hate as Harden did, but "no one has said anything" is patently untrue.


Defiant-One-695

By "any enemies" he might be talking about real people and not internet dweebs.


Habefiet

Harden is one of the literal most slandered players in recent history, this is not a hill you want to die on


SoCalMemePolice

Not even just Harden, Harden on a Philadelphia sports team 😭


Short_Bus_

fr lol


Habefiet

Like legitimately other than Simmons and Embiid who even is there that is in the conversation Zion I guess? But that’s all for off-court stuff, not when he actually plays basketball


BlueJays007

Westbrook


Wonderbread6969

For what it's worth, I think you're being reasonable. Regardless of the outcome, it's been a strange season, even more of a strange series for a "first run" team. You hit on the biggest factor which is inexperience. It's completely fair to consider that this is a first playoff run for a lot of these guys individually, let alone this team as a unit. Mostly they aren't exactly going up against a predictable opponent. I would imagine that mentally preparing to go up against Giannis/Dame/Middleton in a series then never knowing if any of them is actually going to play can throw you off a bit. Obviously it would throw off the Bucks more, but to say it would have zero effect on the Pacers would feel dismissive. A more veteran, experienced team might know how to handle the opponents instability and adjustment to playoff pace/physicality more but anyone demanding that immediately from any team would seem to be ignorant.


jdd32

I think this would reflect most poorly on Carlisle. You bring in a coach like that to try and establish consistency with a young team.


altofalco

If they get out-coached by Doc Rivers it would reflect really poorly on Carlisle for sure. He was instrumental in implementing the offensive system the Pacers use, but some of his decisions this series already (loose rotations and a lackadaisical approach in guarding Dame & Middleton) have bothered me. We’ll see what decisions he puts out today and how it fares 


drjisftw

Rick hasn't won a playoff series since he got his ring with Dallas - this will just add more fuel to the fire if he can't clutch this one out.


Fresh-Bass-3586

He was out of timeouts with 10 minutes left in the 4th last game because his young team was getting in their heads. Other than some of his 3rd q rotations last game he's done a fine job with a roster of youngins.


jdd32

This was in the hypothetical situation that the pacers blow a 3-1 lead with Giannis and Dame out. Jumping the gun a bit for sure, but if that were to happen, it would reflect poorly more on Carlisle than anyone else imo.


jdd32

This was in the hypothetical situation that the pacers blow a 3-1 lead with Giannis and Dame out. Jumping the gun a bit for sure with 2 games left, but if that were to happen, it would definitely reflect poorly more on Carlisle than anyone else imo.


jdd32

This was in the hypothetical situation that the pacers blow a 3-1 lead with Giannis and Dame out. Jumping the gun a bit for sure with 2 games left, but if that were to happen, it would definitely reflect poorly more on Carlisle than anyone else imo.


Fresh-Bass-3586

I don't think the bucks win out but if they do (assuming no major coaching fuckups for the remainder of the series) thst it is an expected part of being a young team...especially since Hali is hurting.


MrShadow04

Look bro no offense but you're defending Hali because of homerism. If he blows the lead then the conversation is definitely warranted


altofalco

That’s fine, conversation is warranted, I just think it’s presumptuous to potentially write off a player as not that guy after their first playoff series at 24 


Stindizzle

There's no reason to write him off if they lose this series. I think it's presumptuous so many are calling this a wrap - tonight is going to be the toughest game for the Bucks to win, with or without Giannis and Dame


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kickit

people here are being absurd, this is the first playoff appearance for a young team. getting to the playoffs is a big step forward for us, winning the series would just be icing on the cake anyone who thinks the Pacers need to blow it all up for losing their first playoff series needs a fucking reality check. this isn't the Suns or 76ers we're talking about, this is our first playoff run.


MrShadow04

It is not presumptuous for a guy to lose significant trust if he blows a 3-1 lead to a team that is a lottery team without their 2 best players on the court. Again, I understand that you're a pacers fan but put the bias aside.


altofalco

Yeah that’s fair, we’ll see how it goes


Defiant-One-695

What fucking conversation?


redd5ive

I assume he isn't fully healthy to be fair, but Haliburton hasn't been consistently great for a few months.


BirdPerson107

Halliburton’s playmaking and assists have been pretty consistent but his scoring is significantly down. His three point shooting is way down…considering he was a front runner in the 3pt contest. Guy was out of his mind before the all star break and during the in season tournament


blunatic

I haven’t watched a ton of Indy games, but I feel like people are underrating Mathurin being out for this series too? Dude is a starter, showed out for ASG weekend and seems to be a rising star.


Nugur

Missing doc my guy.


Ill-Bat-2621

Haliburton is not that guy. No guy ever drops 0 points as the number 1 option playing 30+ minutes.


claporga

Dude is young. His inexperience (and healing hammy) is quite evidently showing. I would only go as far to say that Hali isn’t that guy RIGHT NOW. He definitely has the right tools to be a force in the league.


Additional-Read5926

Halliburton is tall Trae Young. Conversation over.


deemerritt

Tall Trae Young would be one of the best players in the NBA


altofalco

I think that’s a bit reductive and not really that explanatory, considering they play quite differently on offense. They both couldn’t guard a middle schooler, though


korylau

Trae is a wayyy better scorer


RedditUser538xxx

Siakam is literally having the best performance of the playoffs in any conference only person to compare js ant


SoCalMemePolice

After the first two games yes. Since then? 17 on 7-17, 13 on 6-14, and 12 on 5-12 no longer fits that criteria


NotManyBuses

“How did the Pacers let this happen” for one.


ohverychill

defense has been deemed immoral by the Indiana Pacers 😔


BucksFan654

Does Pet Bev own this year? Was his claim of owning the next 5 years, 5 years ago actually true? Is Pat Bev that guy?


altofalco

Regardless of the outcome, Bev’s legacy as a HOF instigator is cemented


KiryuXGoro

For the millionth time he never said it. But yes he is that guy.


claporga

I just know that I’d LOVE to have someone like Bev on our roster. I’ve always liked him. Any team that gets him on their roster is fortunate.


MutantNinjaAnole

I know right? Getting to the sixth seed with a hobbled Halliburton and no Mathurin was remarkable and they should be playing with house money expectation wise. Team needs to make hard choices roster wise this offseason anyways.


Cudi_buddy

Expectations are a bitch lol. If dame and giannis were healthy I don’t think you would have much, but now everyone expects a quick series 


SadTrailBlazersFan

Are they stupid?


gigglios

This is stupid regardless. End of day pacers are a fodder non contender team and its their first playoffs. No one cares if they lose or win. They are legit just playoff fodder regardless of this series lol


kickit

y'all are goofy for this one, we've gone from 25 to 35 to 47 wins in 3 seasons. we're not about to blow it all up over our very first playoff run.


CavalierShaq

Maybe pat bev meant to say “after the next 5 years, it’s mine”


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MonkeyFL3X

Every team says this bro


Classics22

I'm not sure why being bad at it during the regular season would make it OK in the playoffs lol. It's not some random regular season game. Also, every fanbase thinks their team plays to the level of competition


MichuAtDeGeaBa_

It's not "ok" but this is a very young team that has been prone to mental lapses all season and doesn't have a lot of veteran leadership around. It's a huge reason why they're the 6th seed despite having winning records against most of the other playoff teams. I also don't know if I'd call it playing down to the competition as opposed to just embracing the shooting variance and not really having answers in-game when it doesn't go your way. Part of that is probably on coaching as well.


0dias_Chrysalis

"I know we make mistakes, but we make sure to make the mistake on the biggest stage in the sport too"


Real-Literature5729

Pacers are 27-21 against teams over .500 (2nd best win percentage in the east) and 20-14 against teams below .500 (9th best percentage in the east).


jeric13xd

PLS NO 2019 FINALS KD MOMENT 🙏🏼


0dias_Chrysalis

Here's hoping Giannis Achilles is as monstrous as that one article in 2016 mentioned


ComprehensiveSky8926

Which article are u referring to lol? I don’t get the reference


kit4

There was an article I remember about a bunch of measurements they took for Giannis, IDK if its the same one OP mentioned but it does talk about his Achilles https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/14927328/milwaukee-bucks-f-giannis-antetokounmpo-nba-most-exceptional-body


NorthStRussia

Agree obviously but this isn’t a particularly serious concern, it happened to KD and quite literally nobody else


Piano9717

It happened to Rodney hood too


NorthStRussia

Wasn’t related to a prior calf injury though


Piano9717

He had Achilles soreness the previous game and went to the locker room but tried to play through it the next day and ended up tearing it


DarrowViBritannia

Isnt achilles soreness what dame has


rafamundez

His is tendinitis. I \*think\* that's different (according to a few ESPN non-doctor heads)


bigbobo33

Yeah this part is pretty crazy to me. Considering all the concern about a repeat of that, it hasn't ever happened before or since. Kind of a classic media thing where people just parrot what they hear ad infinitum.


Billis-

I mean at no point, or at very few points, have the stakes been as high as what happened with KD. Following at the time, it was either obviously connected or a wild, one in a million coincidence.


CIark

Im no doctor but if you’re unsure about it 6 hours from tip it’s probably not a great idea


Lacabloodclot9

They probably do know the answer as to whether he’s ready to play or not but aren’t gonna announce it until game time as they have no reason to


johnny____utah

And realistically they’re not winning a chip this year so coming back to win a series against the middling Pacers seems a bit not-smart.


AbbreviationsHot4482

LMFAOOO your so scared


johnny____utah

You doin ok?


AbbreviationsHot4482

Why wouldn’t I be?


johnny____utah

Yes, utterly terrified for my life.


AbbreviationsHot4482

I don’t blame you if my team was about to blow a 3-1 lead to Doc Rivers and friends I’d feel the same way


dat_waffle_boi

Remember last time he “rushed back” from a seemingly major injury he dropped 50 in the finals. Hoping this is like that


0dias_Chrysalis

Bucks media has been edging (reports of them playing last night to assistant coaches posting pictures of them with either of the two players all vague and shit). Also, an interesting note, Vegas has the highest odds on Giannis making the first Bucks FG tonight. I've noticed in the past they are often correct hours in advance of Giannis missing games in the RS and used them as a reference sheet for Giannis rest games lol


dusters

Plus the line moved 3 points in the last hour.


Mcswigginsbar

I thought that was for Dame news. He’s been upgraded to questionable.


mathisforwimps

some books have been posting giannis first FG lines for literally every game because it just voids if he doesn't play. it's no risk to them, not necessarily indicative of whether or not he's playing.


Copperhead881

He's off the board now


diggin-in-again

You had me at edging


Mr_Unbiased

Giannis is playing. Dame is not.


Lacabloodclot9

Thanks Doc!


The-Pharcyde

Damn they trying to hold Pat Bev and Bobby P back from another masterclass 


guitmusic12

So no real update


wormhole222

The line moved from Indiana -8 to Indiana -6 so according to betters this increases the chances one or both play.


guitmusic12

Wasn’t this tweet that moved it, Dame was upgraded to Questionable on the most recent hourly injury report


CMYGQZ

Wait a sec now injury report are hourly???


guitmusic12

Always have been, they just rarely change much


Neuroxex

https://twitter.com/eric_nehm/status/1786042309819212065 > The injury report gets updated once an hour at the bottom of each hour. > On the 10:30 am ET injury report that just dropped, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard are still listed as doubtful for Game 6 tonight. I learned this today too lmao


suomesa

on one hand i dont want either of them risking long term injury but then again the selfish fan in me wants to see them play


drutastic57

We’re not gonna know until tipoff


Long_live_theking

Doc rivers (not) in shambles


11b328i

[HERE WE COME](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/ab/83/b5/ab83b50f9b40dc0089bb5e154a0c3886.gif)


jfzastrow

Bout to Cream City my pants if they both end up playing


CDR57

Doc rivers has the chance to do the funniest thing (for all of us)


ColdNyQuiiL

If I’m Dame, I’m not risking the Achilles.


sunsbr

So no news


Big_Daddy_Thiccums

Why does the journalist not journal? Is he illiterate???


pifflord5

Don't come back and die dudes, just take the L No reason to fuck up all of next year for 20% of your ability and massive risk


kyleb402

If they have to try this hard to come back I'd just prefer if they didn't. You never know what could happen and they both would be less than 100% anyway.


Athalos124

I am sure they know better,if they were rushing them and didn't care about the consquences Giannis would have played last game


0dias_Chrysalis

Yeah I mean what are we, the 76ers medical team?


Floridamanfishcam

Why??? They are minor injuries. You wouldn't rather advance into the playoffs with a team whose championship window appears to be rapidly closing?


The_Notorious_Donut

Giannis Willis Reed game incoming


mkeene91101

As someone who watched the Pacers all year, Hali definitely fucked up trying to come back too soon. He really hasn't looked as fast or explosive since. He still has great vision and IQ, but I think it will take some rest in the offseason for him to reset back to full strength. I'm not super worried about this season or this year, any success is a bonus. I am really excited for the next 3-5 years of basketball for us if our roster doesn't implode.


Emiya_Sengo

>rest in the offseason Hali got Team USA camp after playoffs


mkeene91101

Damn thats a good point, I hope Hali doesn't get caught up in the talk and go too hard. He is only 24 and has a great skillset, gotta let his prime swing in naturally IMO but what do I know.


jotyma5

Pacers, we *might* play them! Assume they playing!


Realistic-Direction5

Under normal circumstances I wouldn't want to rush Giannis or Dame but playoffs have been so boring and only in the thought that I have to wait months to watch them play again isn't good for my health.


Vfbcollins

If Dame had been playing through achilles soreness before he was injured, then it is reckless and stupid to play him tonight.


KnivesInMyCoffee

They should let Khris cook.


uwuntu_

Pacers need to put this to bed either way, but if there's another game with no Dame and Giannis they really need to take advantage and take the Bucks out unless they want a game 7 with a giant momentum shift and one or both of them returning.


JustKnowYouAreLoved

this has been such a weird mf series lmao


Electrical-Mule-2057

Pack your bags, Bucks. Rivers can't win with those cats.


Jedi_Sith1812

Pacers in six.....please


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zxchary

Such a thing as game time decisions


KevinSorboFan

I thought yesterday's updates (publicly: "doubtful which means probably not playing, privately: "sources say.......") made me think it was a smokescreen and at least one of them was definitely playing. But now this update coming this early in the day? My brain says this is a smokescreen and they definitely aren't playing.


Nizz553

They are better off without Lillard.


Jordanlf3208

I honestly agree with this, I feel better if Dame plays, Bucks dominated last game with their D, that isn’t happening with Dame getting heavy minutes


GodlySpaghetti

I can see it all. Both sit out tonight. Doc Rivers coaches his ragtag team of misfits to another W. The series is tied 3-3. Dame and Giannis are both cleared to return in Game 7 at home. The Bucks lose game 7 by 23 points. As it was written, so it shall be


Toolb0xExtraordinary

Stop


Round_Rooms

Even if Giannis was in, bucks aren't pulling it out, the refs advanced the pacers before tip off and it's showing through 3 quarters of obscene calls and noncalls


beatrailblazer

If it's even a question, you gotta keep them out, especially Dame


Expert-Hooper

Pacers are winning either way.


AlternativeTea9268

Indiana is beyond cooked if Giannis comes back


dburge22

I wouldn’t try and rush Giannis back, he’s the franchise, Durant came back too early from his calf strain and we all know what happened after that