Would the Pacers be the lowest-seeded champion in NBA history? originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The Indiana Pacers entered the 2025 NBA playoffs as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Now, Tyrese Haliburton and Co. are just four wins away from a championship.
Indiana reached just its second Finals in franchise history thanks to an impressive run through the East playoff bracket. The Pacers first eliminated the No. 5 Milwaukee Bucks before upsetting the No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers, with both series going just five games.
In the East Finals, Indy took the first two games from the No. 3 New York Knicks before closing out the series in Game 6 at home.
While the Pacers have already secured series upsets this postseason, they’re now faced with their toughest challenge yet — an NBA Finals showdown with the No. 1 overall-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.
But if Indy is able to knock off OKC, would the Pacers be the lowest-seeded champion in NBA history? Here’s what to know:
What’s the lowest-seeded team to ever reach the NBA Finals?
The Pacers aren’t the lowest-seeded team to ever reach the Finals — a pair of No. 8 seeds share that title.
In the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season, the Knicks went 27-23 to grab the East’s eighth and final playoff spot. In a win-or-go-home Game 5 against the No. 1 Miami Heat in Round 1, Allan Houston hit a go-ahead shot with under one second remaining to push the Knicks into the conference semifinals.
Patrick Ewing and Co. met the No. 4 Atlanta Hawks in the second round and rolled to a four-game sweep. Then, in a conference finals where five of the six games were decided by single digits, the Knicks defeated the Reggie Miller-led Pacers to punch their ticket to the NBA Finals.
New York ran into the San Antonio Spurs in the Finals and fell in five games, as Gregg Popovich and Tim Duncan combined for their first of five championships over a 15-year stretch.
The Heat in 2023 became the second No. 8 seed to make an NBA Finals run. Miami’s postseason actually started in the play-in tournament following a 44-38 regular season. The Heat fell at home to the Hawks in the 7-8 game before rallying past the Chicago Bulls to claim the No. 8 seed.
After nearly missing the playoffs, Jimmy Butler and Co. proceeded to take down the No. 1 Bucks in five games and the No. 5 Knicks in six games.
Then, in a rematch of the previous year’s East Finals, Miami jumped out to a 3-0 series lead over the No. 2 Boston Celtics. The Heat dropped the next three games but avoided an epic collapse by winning Game 7 in Boston.
Miami’s historic run came to an end in the Finals, where Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets rolled to a five-game series victory.
What’s the lowest-seeded team to win the NBA Finals?
Even if the Pacers beat the Thunder, the 1994-95 Houston Rockets will continue to stand as the lowest-seeded champion in NBA history.
As the reigning NBA champions, Houston entered the 1995 postseason as a No. 6 seed following a 47-35 regular season. The Rockets went the distance with their opponent in each of the first two series, first beating the No. 3 Utah Jazz in five games and then the No. 2 Phoenix Suns in seven games.
Hakeem Olajuwon and Co. actually came back from a 3-1 deficit against Charles Barkley and the Suns. The second-round triumph was capped by a one-point road win in Game 7, where Mario Elie drilled a tie-breaking 3-pointer in the final 10 seconds that became known as the “Kiss of Death.”
After splitting the first four games in the West Finals versus San Antonio, Houston took Games 5 and 6 to make it back to a second consecutive NBA Finals. The Rockets beat the Knicks in seven games the prior year, and this time they were matched up with Shaquille O’Neal’s Orlando Magic.
Hakeem got the better of Shaq in the series, powering the Rockets to a sweep and a historic repeat.
This year’s Pacers, however, could become just the second No. 4 seed to win it all. The 1968-69 Celtics — winning their eighth straight title — are the only No. 4 seed to pull off the feat. Four other No. 4 seeds have made the Finals and lost: the 1977-78 Seattle SuperSonics, 2005-06 Dallas Mavericks, 2009-10 Celtics and 2017-18 Cavaliers.
Would the Pacers be the lowest-seeded champion in NBA history?
The fourth-seeded Pacers are just four wins away from being crowned as champions.
The Indiana Pacers entered the 2025 NBA playoffs as the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
Now, Tyrese Haliburton and Co. are just four wins away from a championship.
Indiana reached just its second Finals in franchise history thanks to an impressive run through the East playoff bracket. The Pacers first eliminated the No. 5 Milwaukee Bucks before upsetting the No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers, with both series going just five games.
SIGN UP HERE In the East Finals, Indy took the first two games from the No. 3 New York Knicks before closing out the series in Game 6 at home.
While the Pacers have already secured series upsets this postseason, they’re now faced with their toughest challenge yet — an NBA Finals showdown with the No. 1 overall-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.
But if Indy is able to knock off OKC, would the Pacers be the lowest-seeded champion in NBA history? Here’s what to know:
What’s the lowest-seeded team to ever reach the NBA Finals?
NBA
The Pacers aren’t the lowest-seeded team to ever reach the Finals — a pair of No. 8 seeds share that title.
In the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season, the Knicks went 27-23 to grab the East’s eighth and final playoff spot. In a win-or-go-home Game 5 against the No. 1 Miami Heat in Round 1, Allan Houston hit a go-ahead shot with under one second remaining to push the Knicks into the conference semifinals.
Patrick Ewing and Co. met the No. 4 Atlanta Hawks in the second round and rolled to a four-game sweep. Then, in a conference finals where five of the six games were decided by single digits, the Knicks defeated the Reggie Miller-led Pacers to punch their ticket to the NBA Finals.
New York ran into the San Antonio Spurs in the Finals and fell in five games, as Gregg Popovich and Tim Duncan combined for their first of five championships over a 15-year stretch.
The Heat in 2023 became the second No. 8 seed to make an NBA Finals run. Miami’s postseason actually started in the play-in tournament following a 44-38 regular season. The Heat fell at home to the Hawks in the 7-8 game before rallying past the Chicago Bulls to claim the No. 8 seed.
After nearly missing the playoffs, Jimmy Butler and Co. proceeded to take down the No. 1 Bucks in five games and the No. 5 Knicks in six games.
Then, in a rematch of the previous year’s East Finals, Miami jumped out to a 3-0 series lead over the No. 2 Boston Celtics. The Heat dropped the next three games but avoided an epic collapse by winning Game 7 in Boston.
Miami’s historic run came to an end in the Finals, where Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets rolled to a five-game series victory.
What’s the lowest-seeded team to win the NBA Finals?
Even if the Pacers beat the Thunder, the 1994-95 Houston Rockets will continue to stand as the lowest-seeded champion in NBA history.
As the reigning NBA champions, Houston entered the 1995 postseason as a No. 6 seed following a 47-35 regular season. The Rockets went the distance with their opponent in each of the first two series, first beating the No. 3 Utah Jazz in five games and then the No. 2 Phoenix Suns in seven games.
Hakeem Olajuwon and Co. actually came back from a 3-1 deficit against Charles Barkley and the Suns. The second-round triumph was capped by a one-point road win in Game 7, where Mario Elie drilled a tie-breaking 3-pointer in the final 10 seconds that became known as the “Kiss of Death.”
After splitting the first four games in the West Finals versus San Antonio, Houston took Games 5 and 6 to make it back to a second consecutive NBA Finals. The Rockets beat the Knicks in seven games the prior year, and this time they were matched up with Shaquille O’Neal’s Orlando Magic.
Hakeem got the better of Shaq in the series, powering the Rockets to a sweep and a historic repeat.
This year’s Pacers, however, could become just the second No. 4 seed to win it all. The 1968-69 Celtics — winning their eighth straight title — are the only No. 4 seed to pull off the feat. Four other No. 4 seeds have made the Finals and lost: the 1977-78 Seattle SuperSonics, 2005-06 Dallas Mavericks, 2009-10 Celtics and 2017-18 Cavaliers.
