Pacers, Tyrese Haliburton translating small-market success into national spotlight

The rewards of success are evident as the 2024-25 NBA season schedule is unveiled. Small-market teams are finally getting some big-stage love following their recent accomplishments.

The Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder are among those benefiting from increased national television exposure. Thanks to popular and marketable superstars like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Anthony Edwards, these teams are attracting more viewers, despite playing in smaller markets.

The Indiana Pacers stand out among the teams receiving increased media attention. This spring, the Pacers surprised the NBA world by winning two playoff series and giving the Boston Celtics a big test in the Eastern Conference Finals. Despite their impressive playoff run, the Pacers have been largely overlooked since the end of the Conference Finals.

This is expected for a small-market team, especially in the current era of social media and declining cable TV viewership. The league often focuses on larger markets, as evidenced by ESPN analyst Tim Legler's comments that network executives deemed the Pacers not "sexy enough" for extensive coverage during their playoff run.

Nonetheless, the Pacers are receiving recognition for their achievements with nine national TV games scheduled for the 2024-25 season. Although the total is technically 14 games, NBA TV games require a subscription and are unavailable to basic cable viewers, so let's stick with nine.

This includes two of their first five regular-season games on ESPN. The highly anticipated matchup against the New York Knicks on Oct. 25 marks their home opener, followed by an Oct. 30 rematch with the Boston Celtics. Indiana will also play their first-round opponents from this past season, the Milwaukee Bucks, on Nov. 22 on ESPN and again on March 11 on TNT.

One of the most intriguing games of Indiana's season occurs on Jan. 25, when the Pacers travel to Paris to face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs at noon EST, showcasing Wembanyama in his original stomping grounds.

The Pacers’ unexpected national spotlight is notable, considering they had only one scheduled national TV game last season—a Jan. 30 matchup against the Boston Celtics. Indiana gained additional exposure through three games in the NBA Cup (formerly known as the In-Season Tournament) and a Feb. 28 game against the New Orleans Pelicans that was added to ESPN’s lineup as a last-minute replacement, as well as the obligatory nationally televised playoff games.

Despite these opportunities, the Pacers were not media darlings before the 2024 NBA season, nor have they been historically. This season marks their highest number of scheduled national TV games since the 2018-19 season when they had 12.

In addition to their newfound success and increased visibility, the Indiana Pacers now have a marketable star capable of selling tickets—something the team has arguably lacked since the days of Paul George and (earlier) Reggie Miller. Despite hailing from the small town of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Tyrese Haliburton has maintained a high profile since the start of the 2023-24 season, bringing the Pacers up with him.

Haliburton has embraced his role as a superstar, ensuring that his team's small-market status doesn't hinder his impact. During the 2024 All-Star Weekend, hosted in Indiana, Haliburton and the Pacers were prominent in NBA media coverage. Since then, he has appeared at Paris Fashion Week and on WWE broadcasts. He even won a gold medal with Team USA in the 2028 Paris Olympics.

With a new, marketable star, the Pacers seem ready to capitalize on this momentum, riding this wave as far as Tyrese Haliburton can take them. So far, the organiztion seems to be succeeding in marketing themselves both on and off the court.