Pacers 2024-25 Schedule: Top Games, Championship Odds and Record Predictions
The Indiana Pacers' deepest playoff run in a decade ended in May with a shorthanded Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Boston Celtics.
Can the Pacers build on that run to make it back to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000?
The Pacers' hopes of a title bid hinge on All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton, whose absence the team was unable to overcome when facing the Boston Celtics last postseason.
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Here's a look ahead at the biggest matchups of the season as the Pacers look to find out if they have added enough pieces around Haliburton to make this team a title contender next spring.
2024-25 Pacers Schedule Details
Season Opener: at Pistons on Wednesday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. ET
Championship Odds: +5500 (bet $100 to win $5,500), per FanDuel
Full Schedule: The full schedule is available on NBA.com.
Top Matchups
New York Knicks
Haliburton wore a sweatshirt that referenced the 1990's playoff rivalry between these two teams after the Pacers ruined the Knicks' hopes of a trip to the conference finals with their Game 7 conference semifinals victory. Is that a sign this rivalry is about to heat back up?
The Pacers made playoff history with their shooting percentage while defeating a Knicks team that was missing top defenders like OG Anunoby. Another meetup between these two teams with their star players back in the fold will give a better idea of how well the young Pacers are able to match up against a consensus title contender.
Boston Celtics
The Celtics' defense proved superior to the Pacers' quick-moving offense as the reigning NBA champions eliminated Indiana from the conference finals in four games.
The Pacers took on that series without Haliburton to match Jrue Holiday, but the Celtics' overall dominance raised questions about how far this team will be able to get without improving on defense. This Eastern Conference Finals rematch will show how much the Pacers have developed since the sweep.
Sacramento Kings
It may have been two years since the trade that brought Haliburton to Indiana and sent Domantas Sabonas to the Sacramento Kings, but that connection between these two quick-moving offensive teams makes this matchup a perennially interesting one.
Now that the Kings have signed DeMar DeRozan, adding to an offense already made dangerous by Sabonas and De'Aaron Fox, this will be a more challenging matchup than ever as the two teams meet again this fall.
Season Forecast
Pascal Siakam and Obi Toppin will return to Indiana after signing extensions this offseason. Toppin is looking to build on a career season during which he averaged a personal-best 10.3 points per game, while Siakam will continue to drive the Pacers' offense after putting up more than 21 points per game in both the regular season and playoffs.
It is likely Ben Sheppard will play a bigger role for the Pacers next season as Indiana looks for a replacement for Buddy Hield, the veteran floor-spacer dealt to the Philadelphia 76ers in March. The 2023 first-rounder made it into the team's playoff rotation and seems likely to get more opportunities to compete with Andrew Nembhard for playing time next season.
While anticipating the next step in Sheppard's development, the Pacers will also be looking for improved rebounding next season after only Siakam, Myles Turner and Jalen Smith topped five rebounds per game in 2023-24. The team as a whole pulled down 41.5 per game last season, good for 30th in the NBA.
The Pacers have other improvements to target this offseason while shoring up the team's defense. Bennedict Mathurin, the 2022 No. 6 pick who is expected to fully recover from shoulder surgery before the start of the season, will continue developing his shooting off the bench.
The Pacers still have some uncertainties surrounding their young roster, but further improvements from bench players like Toppin, Sheppard and Mathurin, steps forward from starters like Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith, and a healthy season from Haliburton could go a long way toward solving the problems that led to the Celtics' sweep of the 2024 conference finals.
Look for Indiana to make the playoffs again next spring, although how far they go from there could depend largely on Haliburton's health. A full season from the two-time All-Star will be crucial to the Pacers' posteason hopes.
Record Prediction: 48-34
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