'Those five games don't matter': Pacers expect much different Milwaukee team in playoffs

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Pacers have been incredibly busy since the NBA All-Star break. They rarely went more than one day without playing and had playoff implications every time out late in the regular season.

They're happy to have a little break before meeting the Milwaukee Bucks in a first-round Eastern Conference playoff series beginning Sunday.

Tuesday marked their first practice since the regular-season ended with a victory over the Hawks. They've rarely had the chance to practice two days in a row since the break.

"It's tough," Pacers veteran center Myles Turner said. "You go from emotional games. Really these past two weeks of the season were like the playoffs. We finally get here. Usually, you can ride that momentum to the next game, but you're kinda just sitting on your (butt) and just wait a little. We're watching film, you're getting your practice in, but you have that anxiousness of just wanting to play, so it's a little tough."

But boy, they said, does it ever beat the alternative of a long offseason. It's been four years since the Pacers reached the playoffs – in 2020, they played in the COVID bubble in Disney World. Some players on this roster, including their All-Star point guard, have never experienced this process.

"I'm excited and really thankful to be here," Tyrese Haliburton said. "Usually at this point, I'm in my exit meetings and talking to you guys in a press conference to get ready for my vacation. I'm just excited to be playing basketball. My plan is to keep playing for the next couple of months. That's the great part about being in this position and I'm very excited about it."

The Pacers have reason for confidence heading into these playoffs, even as the No. 6 seed, because they've defeated every team in the Eastern Conference at least once. They've beaten eight of the 10 teams in the East postseason at least twice – the only exceptions being the No. 5 seed Magic and the No. 9 seed Bulls, who will both be on the opposite half of the bracket. Regardless of who wins Wednesday night's game between the 76ers and Heat for the No. 7 seed, the Pacers will enter the Playoffs with a combined record of 8-3 against seeds 2, 3 and 7.

That includes a 4-1 record against the Bucks. However, they also know that beating a team in the regular season isn't the same as winning in the postseason. That's particularly true because the Pacers and Bucks haven't met since Jan. 3.

'It's an exciting time': Haliburton reacts to Fever drafting Caitlin Clark

"Honestly, those five games don't matter," Haliburton said. "The 82 that we played this year don't really matter at this point. It's really a fresh start."

It's easier to embrace that concept considering just how different each team will be since the last time they met. The Pacers added a two-time All-Star and All-NBA forward in Pascal Siakam, addressing their biggest need. They also traded away guards Bruce Brown and Buddy Hield as well as forward Jordan Nwora and lost promising second-year wing Bennedict Mathurin to a season-ending shoulder injury. Mathurin had two of his best outings of the season against the Bucks, posting 26 points and 11 rebounds in a November win and 25 points and 13 rebounds in a Jan. 1 victory.

The Bucks didn't have major personnel additions, but they moved backup point guard Cameron Payne for veteran defensive nuisance Patrick Beverly. Their more dramatic move was firing coach Adrian Griffin in January and hiring Doc Rivers.

Rivers hasn't drastically changed the Bucks' style of play, the Pacers said, but his tweaks are noticeable.

"They've changed some things and probably simplified some things," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "They've played more zone. Those are things we have to be prepared for. Their most difficult actions are the ones where (Damian) Lillard and Giannis (Antetokounmpo) are involved in. Doc has them doing a lot of that stuff."

There's a good chance the Bucks will have to start the series without Antetokounmpo, who missed the last three games of the regular season with a strained left calf. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Tuesday that the Bucks are preparing as if he won't be available for Game 1 on Sunday.

Antetokounmpo is, of course, the Bucks' franchise player, a two-time MVP who will likely earn his eighth All-NBA nod this season. He was Finals MVP when the Bucks won the title in 2021 and he averaged 30.4 points, 11.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game this season, shooting 61.1% from the floor. He was particularly dominant against the Pacers, scoring 54 points in November, then pouring in a career-high 64 in December. He scored at least 30 in two of the three other meetings.

That being said, the Pacers know not to feel assured of a win if Antetokounmpo isn't available. Lillard gives the Bucks another eight-time All-Star and seven-time All-NBA pick who has playoff experience as a go-to scorer from his time in Portland. The Bucks are more dangerous when they have both of their stars, but Lillard averaged 24.3 points and 7.0 assists per game this season, and his firepower can carry them.

And the Bucks will be able to fill in for Antetokounmpo at power forward with Bobby Portis, a Sixth Man of the Year candidate with 13.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. The 6-10, 250-pounder shot 40.7% from 3-point range, and he averaged 19.5 points per game while shooting 61.1% from the field in the four games he started.

"If Giannis doesn't play for a day or whatever it is, Portis is playing the best he's played his entire career," Carlisle said. "He's shooting like 70% from 3 in his last five games. There's just a lot to digest whether Giannis plays or whether he doesn't."

The Bucks must digest the Pacers' changes. The offense runs differently with Siakam, the defense is significantly better, and they are a much more battle-hardened team after having to fight until the season's last day to finish 47-35 and secure the playoff berth.

So all that effectively comes out as a wash, and the Pacers are just thinking about making the most of this sedate week.

"We're not just satisfied being here," Haliburton said. "We want to take a lot more than that. But all of that stuff is not for us to be concerned about, because the minute you start worrying about what's in front, things get bad in the present. And looking back in the past and the success we had against them in the year, things will get bad if we really focus on that. Obviously, we don't play until Sunday, but we had a good practice today and we'll have a good practice tomorrow. Once you fall in love with that process and the preparation behind it, the results will come."

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Pacers expect much different Milwaukee team in playoffs