Sure, with Victor Oladipo returning from injury it felt like anything could be possible, but the dominance of the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers, among other high-powered teams this season, made a Finals bid in 2020 a bit of a stretch for the Pacers.
Even the most optimistic projections struggle to paint the Pacers as a legitimate playoff threat. FiveThirtyEight’s projections give the team less than a 1 percent probability of making the final round.
The Pacers lost to the Bucks by an average of 18.25 points per game this year.