Thunder knock off Knicks, will battle Thunder for NBA Finals crown
USA TODAY Sports’ Lorenzo Reyes breaks down how the Indiana Pacers fought their way into the NBA Finals.
Sports Pulse
Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam has another trophy for his mantle — The Larry Bird Trophy.
Siakam was named the Eastern Conference Finals MVP after the Pacers downed the New York Knicks, 125-108, in Indianapolis on Saturday to clinch the series 4-2 and punch their ticket to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000.
“Shout out Indy, man. It’s been such an amazing experience for me so far from the first day I landed here. The love has been amazing,” Siakam said after winning the award, which was presented by Pacers Hall of Famer Reggie Miller. “After a bad Game 5, I wanted to bounce back. I have 100% belief in my teammates. Whenever we are down, we always find a way and we did that tonight.”
After being held to 15 points in the Pacers’ Game 5 loss, Siakam dropped a game-high 31 points in Saturday’s win, shooting 10-of-18 from the field, 3-of-5 from three and 8-of-11 from the free throw line. He also added 5 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and one steal. Through six games in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Knicks, Siakam averaged 23.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists.
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“Our two stars, Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam, put our team on their backs and just decided that we were not going to lose this game today,” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said postgame.
Haliburton finished the night with 21 points, 13 assists and six rebounds. He averaged 21.0 points, 10.5 assists and 6.0 rebounds through six games in the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Pacers advance to face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals, which tips off with Game 1 on Thursday.
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