The Thunder lean on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander while the Pacers ride Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam to the NBA Finals.
From time to time, NBA.com’s writers will share their takes on the biggest storylines and trends around the league.
What was your favorite NBA memory in 2025?
Steve Aschburner
Indiana’s run to the 2025 NBA Finals. Perhaps this is stretching the concept of a particular moment, but my favorite extended one was the Indiana Pacers’ playoff run, which lasted all the way through Game 7 of the NBA Finals. No offense to Milwaukee, Cleveland, New York or Oklahoma City, the opponents dispatched by or pushed to the limit by the Pacers, but the way that team unexpectedly climbed from the East’s No. 4 seed was special.
Unexpected, exhilarating, fun — what Indiana did was all of that. The Pacers defeated their familiar nemeses, the Bucks, in the first round. They toppled the top-seeded Cavaliers in five games in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Then they put on a show of resiliency and clutchiness against the Knicks in the East Finals, embodied in that breathtaking comeback from 14 points down with three minutes left in Game 1, forced into overtime by Tyrese Haliburton’s absurd buzzer-beater and won in overtime. They broke New Yorkers’ hearts in six games before suffering the same fate themselves in the Finals, Haliburton tearing his right Achilles tendon in the first quarter of Game 7.
I’m going to miss that Pacers squad this spring … unless it surprises us all over again.
Brian Martin
Indiana’s playoff run. The Luka Dončic trade and OKC’s championship may be 2025’s defining moments, but my favorite memory came from the 2025 runner-up – the Indiana Pacers.
Throughout their run to the NBA Finals, the Pacers were the embodiment of ‘No lead is safe.’ Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden embodied that. Down 17 midway through the fourth, Aaron Nesmith erupted, sinking six 3-pointers in the final five minutes (including three in the last minute) to set up Tyrese Haliburton’s moment.
Haliburton hit what he thought was the game-winning stepback 3 at the buzzer, mimicking the famous choke sign from Reggie Miller (who was on the call courtside). But it turned out to be a game-tying 2 that forced overtime, which Indy ultimately won. The Pacers took that series in six games and pushed the Thunder to Game 7 in the NBA Finals, ending their remarkable run in heartbreaking fashion with Haliburton’s torn Achilles.
John Schuhmann
The Pacers’ run to Game 7 of the Finals. On Jan. 1, 2025, the Pacers were 16-18. Five months later, they were heading to the Finals. And against one of the best teams in NBA history, they forced a Game 7. The run was memorable for Tyrese Haliburton’s four game-winning or game-tying shots, along with Aaron Nesmith’s 3-point flurry in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. But it was also special because of the style of the Pacers’ offense. They didn’t rely on matchup hunting or one-on-one play. Instead, they wore opponents down with relentless ball and player movement that made them a pain in the *** to guard over 48 minutes. Combine that with their pressure defense, and they’ve already inspired some change around the league.
