Joel Embiid will be watching the NBA Finals with a tinge of regret.
The 2023 NBA MVP’s disparaging remark when asked about the Indiana Pacers last summer has resurfaced amid the team’s newly crowned title as the Eastern Conference champions.
The Indiana Pacers are Eastern Conference championsGettyWhile Embiid had a season to forget this year, missing 63 games due to injury, his Eastern Conference rivals, the Pacers, have stormed to the NBA Finals.
Embiid has never reached the Eastern Conference finals despite his superstar status in the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers.
That fact is one his critics often remind his supporters of, and with the Pacers being champions in his division, his old comments have give them more ammunition.
Pacers leader and ‘clutch king’ Tyrese Haliburton jokingly attempted to recruit Embiid to Indiana during Team USA’s Olympics camp last summer.
“You gonna come to Indy? Come on!” Haliburton said.
“I might wanna come to Indy… Sike! Never in my life. I’d rather retire,” Embiid responded.
“Yo, that’s not fair, bruh. Next time ya’ll come to Indy, come on, let’s go to dinner or something, come to my crib,” Haliburton said.
“Nah, I’m good,” Embiid fired back.
To no one’s surprise, Embiid has been savaged for his comments with fans not holding back on social media.
“And now he is retired and Indiana is in the finals. Ironic,” wrote one fan.
Embiid empathically rejected the idea of joining the PacersGETTY Halliburton has grabbed headlines multiple times this playoffsGetty“What a disaster that Sixers project turned out to be. Yikes,” said another
“Well, Pacers don’t want you either Joel, they’d rather be in the Finals,” another fan wrote.
“Well, this absolutely aged like milk, huh,” wrote another.
Since Embiid’s comments, the reputation of the Pacers have transformed and their conference championship has capped off a remarkable postseason.
ESPN NBA reporter Shams Charania believes the small-market franchise is slowly turning into a ‘destination’ for top-level players.
“They’re turning into a destination,” Charania said. “That’s a big statement. Players look at Tyrese Haliburton, look at Pascal Siakam, look at what the front office has done. They’ve been so good at identifying ‘dogs’ — identifying players they know want to win and want to compete.”
Indiana will already have their eye on the ultimate prize, the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy.
Standing in their way is the formidable Oklahoma City Thunder, the NBA’s best team in the regular season who are led by the MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The two sides met twice during the season, two contest in which the Thunder reigned supreme.
The first game took place in Indiana, and the Thunder, despite playing without Chet Holmgren and Alex Caruso, ended the Pacers’ five-game win streak with a narrow 120-114 win.
Gilgeous-Alexander dominated with 45 points while Haliburton could only muster four points and eight assists, although Aaron Nesmith was absent for the hosts which hurt Indiana’s defence.
When the Pacers looked to exact revenge in Oklahoma in the second game, they failed miserably, losing 132-11 in a game in which SGA dominated with 33 points.
But that regular season record will count very little when the bright lights of the Finals shine on both teams later this week.
The Pacers were the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference and now find themselves four wins away from a championship.
SGA is the league’s best player and has proved all season longGettyThey breezed past the Cleveland Cavaliers and Milwaukee Bucks in five games in rounds one and round two of the postseason. And while the New York Knicks threatened slightly more, they still got the job done in six games.
And with the Pacers making their first finals appearance in over 25 years, this season might prove their best chance to make history and a deliver the city of Indiana their first ever world championship.
Nevertheless, the Thunder are the overwhelmingly favourites to win the series and collect the championship.
OKC has proved to be destructive and dominant on both sides of the floor, not least when they dismantled Anthony Edwards‘ Minnesota Timberwolves in five games in the Western Conference finals.
Game 1 of the NBA Finals takes place on Thursday.
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