Starting your fandom for a team can always be tricky. Whether you begin to cheer for a franchise because of a specific player, due to family ties, or simply because they have the coolest jerseys, there are sometimes situations where new NBA fans have no allegiances or ties to any team.
This leads to locality being the biggest reason that most fans begin to follow a specific NBA franchise. However, there are currently 30 states without NBA teams, and unless you are from Canada, outside of the United States, there are no regional franchises for you to follow closely either.
In 2023-2024 there is one team that would be perfect to start cheering for if you want to start emotionally investing in an NBA franchise. That team is the Indiana Pacers and here are the 5 biggest reasons as to why:
5. The Pacers have not won an NBA title yet
Cheering for a team to win their first ever NBA title is incredibly rewarding, as Denver Nuggets fans could tell you firsthand after last season. It means that despite just joining Pacers fandom starting next season, you will still be able to enjoy the biggest moment of their franchise history if and when they do win a championship.
Of the 30 NBA franchises, only the following have never won a championship: the Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns, and Utah Jazz.
4. Indiana has a budding young superstar in Tyrese Haliburton
Watching players grow and get better year after year is insanely gratifying. Indiana having a young superstar in place like Haliburton means that the foundation of the team is in a good spot for on-court talent and potential upside. It also means that you can start cheering for Haliburton even before the Pacers start their season, since the 23-year-old will represent Team USA at the 2023 FIBA World Cup this offseason.
In 2022–2023, Haliburton averaged 20.7 points per game, 10.4 assists per game, and 3.7 rebounds per game across his 56 contests. He continued his incredibly efficient shooting as well, shooting 49.0% from the field and 40.0% from beyond the arc. Haliburton has yet to shoot below 40% from three in his NBA career. Additionally, based on his 49/40/87 shooting splits, he looks poised to join the 50/40/90 club at some point in his career.
This young star criteria removes Brooklyn (Mikal Bridges, 26), the LA Clippers (Kawhi Leonard, 32, and Paul George, 33), Utah (Lauri Markkanen, 26), and Phoenix (Kevin Durant, 34, and Devin Booker, 26), whose best players are all 26 or older. This leaves us with Charlotte, Indiana, Memphis, Minnesota, New Orleans, and Orlando.
3. The Pacers can end their playoff drought as early as this upcoming season
No one wants to be called a bandwagon fan. If you begin cheering for a team that hasn’t been to the playoffs in three seasons, like the Pacers, it is impossible for others to claim you are only cheering for them because of their success. While three seasons may not sound like a lot, Indiana is actually tied for the third longest active playoff drought, trailing only Charlotte (seven seasons), San Antonio (four seasons), and Detroit (four seasons).
The bright spot is that the Pacers are in the weaker Eastern Conference and could make the playoffs as early as next season. In 2022–2023, Indiana was 28–28 when Haliburton played and 7–19 when he missed the game. The Pacers have also gotten better this offseason, and many of the young players will have another season under their belts.
Now is the perfect time to start following them so you can get in before the inevitable playoff runs begin. If we remove all teams that have made the playoffs within the last three seasons, we are left with only Charlotte, Orlando, and Indiana.
2. Indiana’s coach, general manager, and ownership stability is underrated
What sets the Pacers apart from the other two finalists,” the Magic and Hornets, is that their foundation off the court is extremely solid, unlike Orlando and Charlotte. First, starting at the very top, Herb Simon has been the NBA’s longest-tenured owner in the league. After becoming the owner in 1984, Simon has been around for nearly 40 years.
Moving down the chain a bit, General Manager Chad Buchanan has been around since the 2017-2018 season and was the man who pulled the trigger on trading Domantas Sabonis for Haliburton. Buchanan stated clearly at the time that their front office wanted to build around Haliburton and hopefully see him become the next Reggie Miller in Indiana. While we are still waiting to see who actually “won” the Sabonis-Haliburton trade, Haliburton did make his first All-Star team last year, is improving exponentially, and is four years younger than Sabonis.
The man who will help him reach his full potential will be Head coach Rick Carlisle. He is still widely regarded as a top 10 head coach, most notably for his coaching with the Dallas Mavericks when they won the 2011 NBA championship. Additionally, he already coached Indiana from 2003–2007 and helped coach them to a 61-win season. Having an accomplished and experienced coach who has been with the franchise before is extremely beneficial to the growth of a young roster.
1. Logic aside, the Pacers are also going to be super fun
The first four reasons presented all dealt with aspects of team building and situations, but what about just watching basketball for the fun of it? Great question! We know that Haliburton is the star of the show, but the supporting cast in Indiana is super easy to cheer for, regardless of what you value.
Bennedict Mathurin just turned 21 years old and is coming off of a season where he averaged 16.7 PPG and made the 2022–2023 All-Rookie Team. Buddy Hield is a sniper who can hit five or more threes on any given night. Obi Toppin showed promise in New York, and he could truly shine with the change of scenery. Myles Turner is also finally locked into a long-term deal and is still arguably a top-ten center in the league.
Looking at the bench players, the excitement doesn’t fade in the least. The Pacers signed Bruce Brown, who is coming off of an NBA championship where he was a key piece in their rotation and even closed out game 5 of the finals with a clutch basket and two free throws. They also have T.J. McConnell, who plays harder than 99.9% of players in the NBA and still holds the NBA record for steals in a half.
Indiana’s young pipeline got even stronger after the NBA draft, where they selected Jarace Walker and Ben Sheppard. Even guys like Jalen Smith, Aaron Nesmith, and Andrew Nembhard showed sparks last season. They will be a must-watch team on League Pass.
Whether you are from any of the states without an official NBA team, or an NBA fan from outside of the United States, the Pacers should be the place to start your NBA fandom in 2023-2024.