The Indiana Pacers are headed to the NBA Finals following a 125-108 win over the New York Knicks in Game 6 of the Conference Finals. It was a total team effort on the Pacers’ part in this series, but only one man could be named Eastern Conference Finals MVP, and it was Pascal Siakam.
PASCAL SIAKAM IS THE EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS MVP!!!
He receives the Larry Bird Trophy 🤩 pic.twitter.com/ucKfAnWPEE
— NBA (@NBA) June 1, 2025
This was perhaps a bit of a surprise. You’d have expected Tyrese Haliburton to win the Larry Bird Trophy, but Siakam is a worthy recipient.
Siakam averaged 24.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.7 blocks per game against the Knicks. The 31-year-old was incredibly efficient, too, as he shot 52.4% from the field and 50.0% from beyond the arc.
Siakam led the way in this Game 6 win with 31 points (10-18 FG), five rebounds, three assists, one steal, and three blocks. It was his third 30-point game of the series, and the Pacers won all three of those games.
A 39-point explosion by Siakam got the Pacers a huge 114-109 win in New York in Game 2 to take a 2-0 lead. The three-time All-Star then had 30 in a pivotal 130-121 win in Game 4 in Indianapolis to ensure the Knicks didn’t tie the series.
These are the performances the Pacers would have expected from Siakam when they acquired him from the Toronto Raptors in 2024. The Cameroonian brought in some championship experience as well, having won it all with the Raptors in 2019, and it showed in some of the big moments in this series.
The Pacers had given Siakam a four-year, $189.5 million deal before the start of the season, and it’s safe to say he’s repaid their faith in him. For all of his heroics in this series, though, he only narrowly won the award. He got five of the nine votes for MVP, with the four others going to Haliburton.
Haliburton averaged 21.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 10.5 assists, 2.5 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game against the Knicks. The two-time All-Star had more than his fair share of special moments in the series, too.
Haliburton played his part in that miraculous comeback win in Game 1, hitting the shot that sent the game to overtime. The 25-year-old was even better than Siakam in Game 4, finishing with 32 points (11-23 FG), 12 rebounds, 15 assists, and four steals.
You certainly can make a strong argument that Haliburton deserved to win MVP, but he wouldn’t be losing much sleep over losing out to Siakam. He’s headed to his first NBA Finals and would have his eyes set on pulling off a stunning upset.
Standing between the Pacers and their first-ever NBA championship are the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder had the best record in the NBA this season at 68-14 and demolished the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games in the Western Conference Finals. They’ll be the clear favorites in this series, and it’s going to take something special to get the better of them.
This Pacers team has shown it is capable of doing special things, though. They beat the 64-win Cleveland Cavaliers in the Conference Semifinals and would be backing themselves to knock out another juggernaut.
