Pascal Siakam Talks Pacers' Underdog Mentality, 'It's Always Been Us Against Everyone'

Indiana Pacers star Pascal Siakam knows his team won't be picked by many to come out on top in the 2025 NBA Finals, and he seemingly relishes having those skeptics.

"I don't think we expect anyone to pick us," he told reporters Wednesday. "It's been that way the whole playoffs. The whole season. Nothing for us changes. We just continue to be ourselves, focus on us. It's always been us against everyone."

Back in April, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton said he and his teammates "have real expectations to do something special," specifying he had a title in mind. At the time, those remarks might've been met with a collective shrug outside of Indiana.

The doubters are a lot more quiet now after the team decisively dispatched of the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks.

And yet, for as much respect as the Pacers have gained thanks to their run, the experts are overwhelmingly choosing the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Oklahoma City won an NBA-best 68 games in the regular season and finished with a plus-12.7 net rating, per NBA.com. The Thunder boast MVP winner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a stacked supporting cast. Seven players averaged double figures in scoring.

OKC demonstrated its strength in the ways it closed out the last two rounds against the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves. It won by nearly identical scores, beating the Nuggets 125-93 and the Timberwolves 124-94.

By pretty much any metric, the Thunder are a great team.

Upsets do happen and playoff series can be determined by slim margins. The Pacers have a path to their first NBA title thanks to a head coach (Rick Carlisle) who's an elite tactician and two players (Siakam and Haliburton) who can take over a game.

Still, that might not be enough to overcome everything Oklahoma City can throw at them.