NBA In-Season Tournament 2023: Top Storylines for Lakers vs. Pacers Championship
The Los Angeles Lakers and Indiana Pacers will compete Saturday in Las Vegas for the right to be the first team to ever hoist the NBA Cup as winners of the league's In-Season Tournament.
The Lakers have played their best ball, by far, while the Pacers are a surging team looking to establish themselves on the national stage.
Which team will make history in Sin City and which storylines bear watching?
Find out with this preview of the high-stakes game.
NBA In-Season Tournament Championship Info
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Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Indiana Pacers
Date: Saturday, December 9
Location: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas
How to Watch: ABC/ESPN2
Pacers Must Defeat LeBron
2 of 3![LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 07: Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers smiles on the court in the second half of the East semifinal game of the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament against the Milwaukee Bucks at T-Mobile Arena on December 07, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Pacers defeated the Bucks 128-119. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)\](https://legacymedia.sportsplatform.io/image/upload/v1702126014/m0dbmgzgazbpv2uiehyi.jpg?w=684 "LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 07: Tyrese Haliburton #0 of the Indiana Pacers smiles on the court in the second half of the East semifinal game of the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament against the Milwaukee Bucks at T-Mobile Arena on December 07, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Pacers defeated the Bucks 128-119. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)\")
If a team is looking to establish itself in the discussion among the best in the NBA, the easiest way to do so is to knock off the top four seeds in last year's playoffs en route to an appearance in the finals of the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament.
That is exactly what Indiana did, knocking off Cleveland, Philadelphia, Boston, and Milwaukee to set up a battle of unbeaten in the finale.
Tyrese Haliburton admitted to Tim Bontemps of ESPN that he grew up a massive fan of LeBron James but for him and his team to officially arrive on the national stage and become the first organization to hoist the NBA Cup, the budding star will have to defeat the best player of this generation and a star who has been a thorn in the side of the Pacers for the last two decades.
Indiana has combatted James five times in the NBA Playoffs. They have lost all five times.
King James has been the one hurdle the Pacers have been unable to clear and is, at least partially, responsible for the team not receiving the national recognition they likely hoped for over the years.
Head coach Rick Carlisle touted James' undeniable play and impact on the game in Bontemps' piece. "He's the all-time leading scorer, and if there's a Mount Rushmore, he's one of the guys on the NBA Mount Rushmore. That's what we're up against tomorrow. We're up against him and Anthony Davis and a lot of other very good players that are on a real uptick right now competitively."
He added the significance of Saturday's game to the Pacers. "We've got our hands full. But if you're the Indiana Pacers and you're in the process of making the climb and you want great experience, this is the kind of challenge that you've got to love."
The team has thrived in these high-stakes challenges, as evidenced by their string of aforementioned victories against the best the Eastern Conference has to offer. Haliburton, in particular, has led by example through extraordinary play in the tournament.
He shot 57.9 percent from the paint, tallied seven rebounds, and 15 assists, and scored 27 in Thursday's upset over the Bucks. Since the tournament quarterfinals, Haliburton has accumulated 57 assists, proving he is not only a star in his own right but is not afraid to dish the ball and set up scoring for his teammates.
Myles Turner is playing well (26 points, two assists, 10 rebounds) and will have to if he hopes to slow down Anthony Davis.
The Pacers understand that it will not be easy to slow down James and Co., who are looking to establish themselves in the Western Conference while finding on-court chemistry and rebounding from a disappointing start to the season.
James is averaging 25 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 6.6 assists a game and has played like a man fully understanding what one more title could mean to his legacy.
Indiana will likely throw a couple of different players on the face of the NBA, in hopes of either finding one who can slow him down or keeping him guessing as to which look he will be presented with.
Whether that proves to be enough and ultimately allows the Pacers to score their most significant victory over him remains to be seen.
Lakers Finding Their Three-Point Shot
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Outside of the NBA In-Season Tournament, the Lakers were an NBA-worst 30 percent from beyond the arc. They were so bad that the idea of acquiring Chicago Bulls forward Zach LaVine via trade was at least partially supported by his value as a three-point shooter.
In the tournament, however, the team has been an entirely different beast from the three-point line, knocking down 45 percent of those shots.
That improvement, even if it is seemingly only in tournament action, is much needed as the Lakers look to keep up with a Pacers team that has not scored less than 120 points in any of its last four tournament games.
Against New Orleans in the semifinals, the team shot 48.6 from beyond the line, with Taurean Prince knocking down five of eight, or 62.5 percent.
If the Lakers roll into Saturday's game and knockdown almost half of their three-point attempts against a Pacers defense that is third-worst when it comes to opponents threes with 38.9 percent, James and Co. will hoist the NBA Cup.
If only they could find that same long-ball success outside of tournament action.
Stats via NBA.com
