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The Indiana Pacers enter Thursday evening against the Oklahoma City Thunder on the verge of elimination.
The Thunder beat the Pacers in match 5 to take a 3-2 advance in the NBA final. Even if the Pacers are able to eliminate the elimination on Thursday, the match 6 will mark the last eliminatory match of the NBA this year which is played in Indianapolis. The series would return to Oklahoma City for match 7, if necessary.
Several hours before the start of the match, the Pacers shared a rallying cry with the team supporters. “Once again, Indiana,” the Pacers wrote Thursday morning.
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June 13, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana; Fans of Indiana Pacers greet the towels during the third quarter of the fourth match of the 2025 NBA final against Oklahoma City Thunder in Gainbridge Fieldhouse. (Images of Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn)
“It’s it – the last home game of the season. A last chance to fight. To believe,” said a graph published on the Pacers social media account. “Gainbridge Fieldhouse was electric all year round, but this time we will be stronger. Wilder. More relentless than ever. We bring the chaos of the opening tip to the final buzzer. Because tonight, we leave everything there.”
The Indiana Pacers organized t-shirts for fans before the match against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the third match of the NBA 2025 final on June 11, 2025 in Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. (AJ Mast / NBAE via Getty Images)
The Pacers then encouraged fans to create a noisy atmosphere by getting up and waving their yellow towels. “So, stand up. Make these towels. Be dominant. Be deafening and above all … believe.”
The Pacers said that the team “would fight to see another day”.
Meanwhile, the star of the Pacers Tyrese Haliburton makes her way through a tense tape. Even if the start of match 6 is looming, Haliburton’s status for tonight remains a question mark.
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“I think I have to be as smart as I want to be,” said the stars on Wednesday. “I have to understand the risks, ask the right questions. I am a competitor. I want to play. I will do everything in my power to play. This is exactly what it is.”
The Indiana Pacers Tyrese Haliburton (0) goalkeeper returns to the team’s bench in the first quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Five Match of the NBA 2025 final at the Paycc Center. (Images Alonzo Adams-Imagn)
Meanwhile, the Thunder Shai Gilgeous-Alexander superstar is at the dawn of an almost unprecedented season with regard to individual honors.
He is the favorite, for the moment, to win the MVP of the NBA final. He has already won the NBA MVP Prize for this season, which means that it could be the first double MVP since LeBron James did with Miami in 2011-12 and 2012-13.
Gilgeous-Alexander also won the NBA score title last season.
Thursday is also the 25th anniversary of the end of the last appearance of Indiana in the NBA final before this season.
