Playoffs locked up. Just happened. Like a few minutes ago. Just now! All locked up!

[GreekAlex]

Looks like the Pacers are going to lose tonight

[bstein14]

Pacers lost tonight and its Pacers vs. Bucks tomorrow while we get two straight games against the worst team in the league the Washington Wizards. A pretty realistic chance we're sitting in the four seed on Thursday night.... or at least tied with the Bucks if they go 1-1 against Indy and the Lakers.

4. Detroit 38-29 (after two straight wins against the Wizards)

The games against the Wizards are pretty much must win games if we want to have a legit chance at having home court advantage in a playoff series because we have a brutally tough schedule to close out the season.

Just 16 games remaining on the season we're certainly in the home stretch now. Those last 9 games include 8 against teams with winning records (everyone but Toronto) and

Wizards (H)
Wizards (H)
OKC (H)
NOP (A)
MIA (A)
DAL (A)
NOP (H)
SA (H)
-----
CLE (H)
MIN (A)
OKC (A)
TOR (A)
MEM (H)
SAC (H)
NY (H)
MIL (H)
MIL (A)

[GreekAlex]

Pacers lost tonight and its Pacers vs. Bucks tomorrow while we get two straight games against the worst team in the league the Washington Wizards. A pretty realistic chance we're sitting in the four seed on Thursday night.... or at least tied with the Bucks if they go 1-1 against Indy and the Lakers.

4. Detroit 38-29 (after two straight wins against the Wizards)

The games against the Wizards are pretty much must win games if we want to have a legit chance at having home court advantage in a playoff series because we have a brutally tough schedule to close out the season.

Just 16 games remaining on the season we're certainly in the home stretch now. Those last 9 games include 8 against teams with winning records (everyone but Toronto) and

Wizards (H)
Wizards (H)
OKC (H)
NOP (A)
MIA (A)
DAL (A)
NOP (H)
SA (H)
-----
CLE (H)
MIN (A)
OKC (A)
TOR (A)
MEM (H)
SAC (H)
NY (H)
MIL (H)
MIL (A)

I count 17 games remaining and there’s some tough games on the remaining schedule. I could see us going 10-7.

Anything more is impressive.

[ComboGuardCity]

I’d rather have the Knicks than the bucks. Superstars are never fun in the half court. And the playoffs is a half court game.

[tmorgan]

10-7 finish would be 46-36, a record beyond even the most optimistic of our preseason predictions.

[BadMofoPimp]

10-7 finish would be 46-36, a record beyond even the most optimistic of our preseason predictions.

I would think most fans and experts thought 40 wins would be unachievable.

[jars]

10-7 finish would be 46-36, a record beyond even the most optimistic of our preseason predictions.

I would think most fans and experts thought 40 wins would be unachievable.

If the season were to finish today, our improvement in win percentage from last year (improvement of 0.383) would be the 6th best in history. The only teams that have a better improvement?

07-'08 Boston Celtics (huge roster reconstruction)
'97-'98 Spurs (Tim Duncan rookie year and previous year having heaps of injuries)
'89-'90 Spurs (David Robinson rookie year & roster reconstruction)
'04-'05 Suns (Roster reconstructions and introduction of 7SoL with Nash)
'79-'80 Celtics (Larry Bird rookie year & roster reconstruction with Parish)
per: https://mcubed.net/nba/bwimp.shtml

You can't ever expect this sort of improvement, especially considering there weren't any big flashy moves. Great job by the whole team, coaches & execs.

[Mr Peanut]

10-7 finish would be 46-36, a record beyond even the most optimistic of our preseason predictions.

I would think most fans and experts thought 40 wins would be unachievable.

After last season's nightmare I thought even 30 wins was a pipe dream. Happy to have been proven thoroughly wrong.

[hoophabit]

Yeah, I was of the opinion that 30 wins would be a very successful season after last year. There seems little reason to question whether the team is better managed and coached. Looking almost certain the youngsters will get some playoff experience, which is a nice change from all our years of futility.

[breezypeezy]

I smell Pacer blood in the water. 5th seed will be ours soon.

[blog_pistons]

The next 7 games that are easier than the remaining 10, have the difficulty that the last one is back to back and it is also in a stretch of 11 days. Let's hope the injuries spare us between now and the end of the year. I look forward to seeing the team in the playoffs.

[BadMofoPimp]

10-7 finish would be 46-36, a record beyond even the most optimistic of our preseason predictions.

I would think most fans and experts thought 40 wins would be unachievable.

After last season's nightmare I thought even 30 wins was a pipe dream. Happy to have been proven thoroughly wrong.

Pistons provin em ALL wrong!!!

[BadMofoPimp]

I think this improvement is a culmination of many people wanting to prove em wrong like Bickerstaff after what he went through with Cleveland, Tobias after what went down in Philly, Hardaway after Denver while Cade and Auser really wanting to win games after last year. Then throw in Role players improvement makes a recipe for success. Just a bunch of guys who truly want to prove em all wrong and buying into the Detroit against everybody mentality. It is truly been a heart warming experience to witness. Makes me proud to be a Pistons fan.

[BadMofoPimp]

The next 7 games that are easier than the remaining 10, have the difficulty that the last one is back to back and it is also in a stretch of 11 days. Let's hope the injuries spare us between now and the end of the year. I look forward to seeing the team in the playoffs.

Even if they lose in the first round, this season has been a resounding success.

[zeebneeb]

A decent write up on the East 3-6 courtesy of nba.com

https://www.nba.com/news/taking-stock-east-contenders-2024-25

"Moving up, it’s four competitive clubs, all with winning records, jockeying for playoff position but essentially resigned to running out of math needed to reach or pass either of the top two heavyweights.

“I try not to look a lot,” Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said Monday. “But it’s pretty bunched up and it’s in flux. … There’s a lot happening, but we don’t focus on the standings.”

[jars]

That Pacers/Bucks game was crazy. This jostling between us and them over the coming month is going to be interesting. We currently have played 2 more games than both teams and split them with a win and loss. Definitely in the ball park.

[breezypeezy]

Winning our second game with the Wizards will put us at 29-14 for the last 43 games.
Thats enough evidence for me to believe we are a top 10 team in the NBA.

They believe they can win every contest, the type of attitude that becomes self fulfilling prophecy.
The sweet reality is they are still improving, so the sky is the limit.

Do I believe they win it all this year, not quite yet, however, to say they will not go quietly into the night might be an understatement.

Youd better be ready to work your tail off if you want to eliminate these guys this post season.

[zeebneeb]

Great video, breaking down Beasley, and his amazing season shooting from distance.

https://youtu.be/U4IWnCYCSYg?si=9Wel1kyTjQa0lOv5

[mike06181]

You can see them playing with more confidence each and every game. This season is exactly what they needed to turn the corner into a winner.

[zeebneeb]

Great video on how special what Cade is doing this year, what he's become, and could become.

https://youtu.be/KngObP06njI?si=YnF8olr-Ueq-_oTz