Sonics Fans, It's Time to Board the Pacers Bandwagon
If you hate OKC as much as I think you do, you should be rooting for the Pacers in the NBA Finals. As a bonus, this team is really fun to watch.
Definitely-On-My-Couch, Wash. – OK, Sonics fans. The Oklahoma City Thunder are in the NBA Finals, and I know you’re not ready to watch them hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
Like many of you, I was a Sonics fan. I loved GP and Shawn Kemp. As a Seattle native living abroad, I had limited access to highlights. I only had one TV channel, the Armed Forces Network, and I memorized the air times for The George Michael Sports Machine and CNN Headline Sports with Van Earl Wright.
The Sonics always had the best highlights, and I was an all-around fan of all things Seattle. Then something changed. The Sonics were bounced by the Denver Nuggets, and that one channel aired Reggie Miller’s “choke game.”
Now, 30 years later, Tyrese Haliburton has already had his version of a “choke game.” In case you haven’t been watching the Eastern Conference playoffs this season, the Pacers are in the middle of a run that defies the odds. Not only did they rally from a seven-point deficit in the final 40 seconds of overtime to beat the Bucks in a closeout game, they came back from seven down in the final 50 seconds of Game 2 against the Cavs. Then they rallied from a 14-point deficit in the final four minutes of Game 1 against the Knicks.
These comebacks have been so wild, it’s possible one of them tops the “eight points in nine seconds” miracle Miller pulled off against the Knicks in 1995.
So now the Pacers are in the Finals for the second time in franchise history, playing the team that was stolen from Seattle – and I’m inviting all of you to join the bandwagon. Even if it’s purely to spite the Thunder, welcome aboard the ’Cers Express.
For the fourth time in these playoffs, the Pacers are the underdog, so I understand if you’re not inspired by their chances. However, given what’s happened so far, you can’t rule out the possibility of this magical run extending through the NBA Finals.
If you do decide to join the bandwagon out of spite, you might just enjoy this team. First, they’re a team-first organization that plays deep into its bench. Haliburton’s lobs to Obi Toppin might not match Payton to Kemp, but they’re electric. T.J. McConnell is a player who’s easy to love when he’s on your team and an irritant to everyone else in the league. Pascal Siakam is easy to root for and has a devastating midrange game. And then there’s Myles Turner, a big man who can shoot from deep, much like former Seattle fan favorite Sam Perkins, who also once played for the Pacers.
Also, if you need a local connection, I’d take Andrew Nembhard over Chet Holmgren, but I’m very biased.
And if it weren’t for the Pacers, Detlef Schrempf – who arrived in Seattle via the Derrick McKey trade – may never have played for the Sonics (I consider that deal a win for Seattle).
OKC has a great team, but looking through blue-and-gold-colored glasses, I think the Pacers have a chance. As a fan, I want the Pacers to win – and there's also that part of me that wants this team to win just to keep a championship out of Oklahoma City.
So, let’s do this together, Seattle. Let’s will the Pacers to victory, and keep the Thunder from raising that trophy.
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