The Indiana Pacers clinched a berth in the NBA Finals after taking down the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals. Indiana will now get ready to take on the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder for the right to be called NBA Champions.
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Indiana used a strong Game 6 to eliminate the Knicks, and the entire team has been playing lights out. But it was star forward Pascal Siakam who won the MVP award for the Eastern Conference Finals.
However, during his speech, Siakam admitted that he "wasn't the guy".
"I'm happy, I'm blessed man. It's been a crazy journey. A lot of ups and downs. I know I'm not, you know, the guy that everyone is going to talk about a lot and all that stuff and I really don't care about it. I’m just a young kid from Cameroon that moved to the U.S. when I was 18 years and gave everything to the game of basketball. I just work every single day. I don't cheat the work."
The three-time All-Star averaged 24.8 points on 52.4 percent shooting in the six-game series. Siakam was one of the biggest reasons why the Pacers were able to take down New York, and he was honored in this manner.
Since he arrived in Indiana, the Pacers have been much more formidable. Siakam has brought a sense of winning to this group, and everyone on the team has bought into his leadership.
“It’s been such an amazing experience for me so far,” Siakam said. “From the first day I landed here, the love has been amazing.”
Indiana will need Siakam to step up even more against the Thunder if this team wants any chance to win the series. The Pacers are a tight group, and they have come together in a special way during the postseason.
The Pacers will now look to keep things going strong when they begin the NBA Finals next week. Game 1 is scheduled to begin on Thursday, June 5, at 8:30 p.m. ET.
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