The Pacers last home game, 10-year veteran Turner firmly believes that the team can drag into a tiebreaker

(The original text was published on June 17, and the author is MarcJ.Spears from Andscape website. The content of the article does not represent the translator's opinion)

Pacers center Miles Turner shouted to his teammates many times on the way to the away locker room with the late team's hero Mel Daniels.

"This is just a game in the series, brothers, the series is not over yet," Turner said loudly.

Finals Series G5, Turner and his Pacers lost to the Thunder 109-120, who took a 3-2 lead in this round of the finals series with a seven-inning four-win system, just one step away from the team's first championship trophy since moving from Seattle to Oklahoma City in 2008.

And the Pacers are in a situation of fighting back, and only by winning the series G6 at the Gambrigi Stadium in Indianapolis can the suspense of the series continue.

To make the Pacers worse, the G5 mobile combat particles were not recovered when the point guard Halliburton fought with an injury to his right leg. Faced with the season's survival battle, Turner firmly believes that Halliburton and the entire team are ready for the sixth game.

"The key is that we still have the opportunity," Turner said. "That's all. The series has not yet ended, and we will return to the hottest home atmosphere in the league, which is why I have to shout to my teammates who are walking in front. I choose to speak out immediately after the game because the mood is the most lively at this moment. Young players can easily be depressed, and someone must come forward to convey this belief. I just let the voice continue to echo."

Pacers selected Turner from the University of Texas at the 11th pick in the first round of the 2015 draft. The 2.11-meter-high and 113 kilograms have become the longest player in the Pacers' history. He has played in a total of 642 regular season games in 10 NBA seasons, ranking 6th in the team history list. As a representative of "one person, one city" who has only played for the Pacers in his career, Turner knows that the team is creating the glorious moment that is closest to the championship in team history.

Before joining the NBA in 1976, the Pacers won three ABA championships in 1970, 1972 and 1973. The only time they made it to the NBA Finals in team history was in 2000, when they won a victory in the Finals series with the Lakers. Halliburton specifically mentioned before the start of this year's finals that this team, founded in 1967, has a variety of fans across nearly sixty years.

"The fans' parents are also crazy about this team, and the parents' parents are the same." Halliburton said at the finals media day on June 4, "Compared with the big city team, the home advantage we have is completely different from the fan culture. This is why I enjoy being one of them, why I am willing to stay here for the entire career, and I truly love every day as a Pacers player."

It is this historical accumulation that has made representing the Pacers in the NBA Finals, bringing a different pressure to play for this only NBA team in Indiana. Halliburton revealed to Andscape that after winning the first game of the finals in an upset, the whole team was as psychologically burdened as "gambling with the banker's money." Now only two wins away from the championship, Pacers fans have truly seen the championship trophy like a carrot hanging in front of them for the first time.

Halliburton's competitive state will be the biggest variable in the series, and the Pacers core defender missed all six shots in G5 and failed to show his usual offensive aggression. He himself made it clear that he would play in G6, and Turner also believed that this teammate would be able to make timely adjustments.

"This is the finals," Halliburton said. "I spent my whole life standing on this stage. As long as I can run, I am eager to play and help my teammates in any way. Tonight (G5) was really bad, but missing the game was never my option. As long as I can still walk, I will fight."

Although it seems like a different world, the Pacers did lead 2-1 in this final series, setting the glorious moment in the team's history that is closest to the O'Brien Cup. Later, the Thunder, who led the regular season to the playoffs, launched a fatal counterattack. After winning two consecutive games, they were only one step away from the team's first championship in history. The Thunder suffered a series of losses to the Rockets on April 4 and the Lakers on April 6.

Turner still firmly believes that the Pacers can fight back in the G6 Jedi and drag the series into tiebreak. This veteran, who has only debuted on the finals for ten years in the NBA, talked about this hard-won journey to compete for the championship. He recalled his long persistence in joining the "Ten Year Veterans Club", his years of suffering from transaction rumors, and his "blood, sweat and tears" he put in the Pacers' robe.

"Our fans have been waiting for this moment for too long," said Turner, 29. "They are already restless. When the G6 Pacers come on, they will be as thunderous as the Thunder's home court. At my stage, you never know when the next opportunity will come. At this moment, I am at the youngest, healthiest and most dynamic peak of my career. For me, I can only give it all. Fight with my back and burn out the last drop of oil."

No matter what the result is, this will be the last game of the Pacers' home season, and will this also become a farewell performance for Turner in the Pacers' gown?

This summer, Turner will be a full free agent. The Pacers have never paid a luxury tax since 2006, and renewing the starting center is likely to need to break through the red line. However, ESPN's previous report said that the Pacers were willing to make an exception to pay taxes for Turner, and the Pacers currently have $20 million in space from the luxury tax line. Since Turner's existing contract was renewed in January 2023, according to regulations, the contract cannot be renewed in advance before June 30. The two sides can start negotiations after the finals are over..

But Turner said that at this moment his mind was full of how to continue the finals, rather than the upcoming renewal negotiations, and he knew that the chance to win the championship was fleeting.

"This is the most wonderful moment of the year, brother," Turner said, "By the determination to fight back to the home court, the scene we dreamed of as a child. So I feel full of fighting spirit, which is the most appropriate description... I can feel that desire, everyone is so eager to win. More importantly, I dedicated the most precious time of my life to this city, and my desire is no less than anyone."

Original text: MarcJ.Spears

Translated by: Li Taibai