The Indiana Pacers pulled off a massive win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday and now hold an intimidating 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
But even though his team is just one win away from moving on to the next round, head coach Rick Carlisle knows they aren’t done yet.
Speaking with ESPN on Sunday, he opened up about his team’s mindset and what they are feeling on the verge of such a historic accomplishment.
“We’re going to keep approaching this like we have everything to prove,” Carlisle said. “We know people don’t believe in us … the things about the scores and all that, it’s meaningless. This game is now history. So, we got to stay in the present moment as much as we can try to maintain an edge.”
Staying present is very important for this Pacers team.
If they can put the Cavaliers away, it’ll be one of the most resounding wins in recent playoff history.
But if they somehow give up their 3-1 lead, it’ll be shameful and embarrassing, and the Pacers will never forget it.
Of course, there is every reason to believe they will win this series and then take on the winner of the Boston Celtics versus New York Knicks.
Sunday’s game was a prime example of how powerful this Pacers team is.
They built the largest halftime lead in playoff history, and the Cavaliers were never fully in the game, consistently outplayed on both ends of the court.
Cavaliers fans are fearing the worst, while Pacers followers are expecting the best.
But Carlisle isn’t letting himself, or his players, get too far ahead.
They know they have a good chance of moving on, but they aren’t there, at least not yet.
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