The Pacers started the season 10-15, but now they're two wins away from their first NBA championship. They've earned our respect.

Jay-Z bet $1,000,000 against Indiana Pacers originally appeared on Athlon Sports. As sports betting sweeps the nation, celebrities and streamers have gotten in on the action, often wagering hundreds of thousands of dollars as an entertainment stunt.

However, what won the 68 games and got them to the Finals was their defense, and the Pacers torched that for a long stretch of Game 3. Indiana took better shots and capitalized on them, finishing with a 116 offensive rating (9.5 points higher than the Thunder allowed on average during the playoffs coming into the game).

Twenty-five years ago, the Indiana Pacers faced another pivotal NBA Finals Game 4. It was the game where the legend of Kobe Bryant was born.

Udonis Haslem hypes up the crowd after telling Pat McAfee he's siding with the Pacers and trusting Rick Carlisle's leadership.

The Pacers are back in the NBA Finals for only the second time in franchise history, 42 years after Herb and brother Mel bought the team.