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The Indiana Pacers enter Thursday night’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on the brink of elimination.
The Thunder defeated the Pacers in Game 5 to take a 3-2 NBA Finals series lead. Even if the Pacers are able to stave off elimination on Thursday, Game 6 will mark the final NBA playoff game this year that is played in Indianapolis. The series would shift back to Oklahoma City for Game 7, if necessary.
Several hours before Game 6 tipped off, the Pacers shared a rallying cry with the team’s supporters. “One more time, Indiana,” the Pacers wrote on X on Thursday morning.
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Jun. 13, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana; Indiana Pacers fans wave towels during the third quarter of game four of the 2025 NBA Finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. (Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images)
“This is it–the final home game of the season. One last chance to fight. To believe,” a graphic posted to the Pacers social media account read. “Gainbridge Fieldhouse has been electric all year, but this time we’ll be louder. Wilder. More relentless than ever. We bring the chaos from the opening tip to the final buzzer. Because tonight, we leave it all out there.”
Indiana Pacers lay out t-shirts for fans before the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder during Game Three of the 2025 NBA Finals on Jun. 11, 2025 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. (A.J. Mast/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Pacers then encouraged fans to create a raucous atmosphere by standing up and waving their yellow towels. “So get on your feet. Wave those towels. BE DOMINANT. BE DEAFENING AND ABOVE ALL…BELIEVE.”
The Pacers said the team will “fight to see another day.”
Meanwhile, Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton is fighting his way through a strained right calf. Even as the start of Game 6 looms, 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,” the star guard said Wednesday. “Have to understand the risks, ask the right questions. I’m a competitor. I want to play. I’m going to do everything in my power to play. That’s just what it is.”
Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) walks back to the team bench in the first quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder during game five of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. (Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images)
Meanwhile, Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is on the cusp of a nearly unprecedented season when it comes to individual honors.
He is the favorite, as of now, to win NBA Finals MVP. He has already won the NBA MVP award for this season, meaning he could be the first double MVP since LeBron James did it with Miami in 2011-12 and 2012-13.
Gilgeous-Alexander took the NBA’s scoring title this past season as well.
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Thursday is also the 25th anniversary of the end of Indiana’s most recent appearance in the NBA Finals before this season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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