After giving up a 26 point 3rd quarter lead against Cleveland to lose 119-114, Indiana finds themselves down 3-0 in the series. Their chances of winning the series are all but gone now and it’s astonishing that they couldn’t win one of those three games with Paul George playing as well as he has been. For the series thus far, George is averaging 32.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 7.7 assists on 61.5 TS%. Additionally, this is the second time a player averaged 30+ points, 5+ rebounds, and 5+ assists in a playoff series loss to LeBron (the first instance was Gilbert Arenas in 2006).
The Pacers’ average margin of defeat through three games is 4 points, which is the smallest ever for a team trailing 3-0 in a series. After a missed buzzer beater in Game 1, the Pacers’ historic downfall in Game 3, and everything else that this 3-0 deficit entails. The Pacers only have one thing left to play for, the names on their backs.
Statistics show that 60% of teams down 3-0 in an NBA playoff series end up getting swept. However, it’s a different matter from winning the series now, as much as they’d still like to. Jeff Teague sums it up their current predicament quite effectively.
“We’re playing for pride now,” Jeff Teague said. “We’re all competitors in here and we all believe in one another. We ain’t getting swept.”
