Interesting, Pacers Turner talks about the Pacers entering the finals lacking attention: We rarely go on TV

Miles Turner talked about the lack of national attention before the Pacers beat the Knicks to advance to the NBA Finals in the 2025 Eastern Conference Finals.

Even if the Indiana Pacers advance to the 2025 NBA Finals, Miles Turner knows they are still not a big market team. But after beating the New York Knicks to win the Eastern Conference Finals, the center understood that his team would “get good results” without paying attention. After the

victory, Turner said he saw fans admit that this was their first time watching the Pacers play in the Eastern Conference Finals. As a team's ten-year veteran, Turner has become accustomed to the current situation where Indiana lacks attention, but he said his team "thrives" in this environment.

"A lot of people watch us play the playoff series for the first time," Turner said on the Sports Center program. "We're here. We rarely see games on TV. People don't really pay attention to us unless we let them notice us, but we are thriving because of that. We know we're not the most dazzling team, but we've achieved good results."

Turner is the longest player on the team and the Pacers' unofficial spiritual leader. While Tyreth Halliburton and Pascal Siakam are the team’s star players, Turner is undoubtedly the source of vitality for the team, leading his teammates to their full strength every night.

Turner performed poorly in the series against the Knicks, averaging only 13.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. However, on both offense and defense, Turner's blocking and ability to pull space appear precious when facing Carl Anthony Towns. Throughout the series, Turner often takes advantage of Towns’ poor decision-making abilities, forcing him into foul trouble.

Miles Turner made his first NBA Finals with the Pacers

Given Turner's history with the team, the Pacers' victory in the Eastern Conference Finals means more to Turner than any other player on the team. The 29-year-old center was emotional after the game and addressed the audience at the Gainbridge Arena to thank them for their support throughout his ten-year career.

Talking about the lack of attention from the Indiana Pacers nationwide, Turner talked about how strong the Pacers’ chemistry is throughout the year. He believes that the team’s unpopularity among average fans is partly due to the lack of big-name stars, but he believes it is beneficial to the team’s success.

"I think the super team and strong team combinations have been less effective than before over the years," Turner said in a post-match press conference. "The NBA has been very popular since I joined the league. But the new trend is what we are doing now. The Thunder are doing the same. Young people rush out to run, defend, and use the power of friendship, which is what they call it."

The Pacers' mid-season trade has been their only big gain for the Pascal Siakam over the past decade. They also got Halliburton from the Sacramento Kings in 2022, but the deal happened before the defender grew into the player he is today. Besides that, Indiana relies entirely on what Turner acknowledged as "the power of friendship" to build this team.