The Pacers made it to the Eastern Conference Finals faster than they thought. What does that mean in the offseason?

The Pacers are in a great, yet tricky, position

Jan 30, 2023; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle, left, center Miles Turner, middle, and president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard, right, share a laugh during an Indiana Pacers press conference at Gainsbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports / Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

INDIANAPOLIS — After a deep run into the Eastern Conference Finals, the Indiana Pacers are entering offseason mode. Their campaign was excellent as they accomplished the goals that star guard Tyrese Haliburton laid out over one year ago.

"I need to be in the playoffs. That's the goal," Haliburton said at the 2023 NBA Draft Lottery. That was on May 16 of 2023. A full calendar year later, the Pacers were still playing. They had a deep playoff run, something they hoped for before the postseason started.

Indiana has to proceed forward from that reality. In one year, they went from a franchise that was building and setting long-term goals to one of the last four NBA teams alive in the postseason. General manager Chad Buchanan shared on Tuesday that the franchise hoped to make the Eastern Conference Finals within three years before this campaign. They did it in one.

"A little ahead of where we anticipated being. But it's also a great spot," Buchanan said Tuesday. "To get to the Eastern Conference Finals in year one of this is truly remarkable. But it also puts us in a position of looking forward."

Now, they look ahead with a young team that is built to peak later while also dealing with increased present-day expectations and hopes after a deep playoff trip. Trying to build off of success will be the name of the game for the Pacers, though Buchanan noted that growth and achievements are rarely linear in the NBA.

The next step involves improving, and that can be done in many ways. Given the age of the Pacers — who entered last season as the seventh-youngest team in the league — internal improvement alone should be enough to make the team better. But they need to keep the group together to grow in that way, and that all starts with Pascal Siakam.

"The first very important step is to begin recruiting Pascal Siakm in earnest. That will start today," Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said Tuesday of the offseason. "You've got to let him know how important he is." Star guard Tyrese Haliburton, a strong recruiter, agreed. "It's a big deal to bring Pascal back," he said. "He knows I'll be texting him nonstop and calling him nonstop... I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure Pascal Siakam is in a Pacer uniform next year."

Siakam is an unrestricted free agent, meaning he is free to sign anywhere he wants. Indiana has full Bird Rights on the forward, though, meaning they can offer the 30-year old a max deal and can present him with a contract with more guaranteed years and total money than any other franchise.

If the Pacers are able to keep Siakam, and early reporting suggests they are willing to offer him everything they can, then their path forward involves getting better both internally and with smaller external additions. If Siakam stays and Haliburton is in the fold, every player besides Obi Toppin from Indiana's postseason rotation would be under contract again next season.

Buchanan said the team liked Toppin's season and his fit with the franchise. If he also returns, that would give the blue and gold a strong group with ascending youngsters Jarace Walker and Bennedict Mathurin ready to take on responsibilities in the short and long term.

What does that all add up to? The Pacers know that a Conference Finals appearance this year does not guarantee one in a future season. If they keep their roster together, they know there is a high ceiling. But with a younger team, many outcomes are possible.

"A good young team, there's lots of them out there," Buchanan said. "There's other teams out there that are very comparable to us. Trying to continue on his growth curve takes a lot of work internally."

There are also financial constraints. Reasonable contracts for Siakam and Toppin would force Indiana to consider the luxury tax line. Does their recent success equate to a tax bill next season? Perhaps more sustained success would need to come first.

Buchahan did comment on the team's willingness to spend beyond the luxury tax threshold next season. "[Ownership] wants nothing more than to bring a championship... I think if we get to the point where we feel like this is a move that could get us into a championship spot, I think ownership will get behind [paying the tax]," Buchanan said.

If both Toppin and Siakam are back with the blue and gold next year, then there won't be much room to add external talent, if any. The Pacers know they need to improve their defense and rebounding — something that executives, coaches, and players have shared throughout the season and into their exit interviews.

With largely the same roster, Indiana would be counting on internal development to change their defensive fortunes and abilities on the glass. A young team should have improvements with age and time together. What the Pacers will try to figure out is if that projects to be enough growth that running it back makes sense.

If not, they'll need to consider making changes to their team with external free agent additions. And if Siakam signs elsewhere, the entire offseason outlook changes. But the Pacers made the Conference Finals earlier than they expected. That is a massive success. Now, they'll try to parlay that into sustained winning with their young team.

"It's one route that we've looked hard at," Buchanan said of running it back. "It's a balance. It's going to be a lot of discussions, a lot of debate. And maybe there's nothing out there that makes sense. And we're fine with that. We really like this team. If we come back with this same group next year, we still believe there's a lot of long-term upside."

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• Indiana Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan discussed the Pacers playoff run and future in a radio interview. CLICK HERE.
• Indiana Pacers fall late to Boston Celtics in Game 4, season ends in 0-4 Conference Finals sweep. CLICK HERE.
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