The Cup Misses- An Indiana Pacers TL

[OriiGiins]

Chapter One: A Few Inches Short

“The problem is, even if Ben Wallace is ejected, what stops…”

As Mike Breen was trying to play out the situation, the announcers table was splashed with a beer that came flying from the stands.

“And now some idiot fan tried to throw their beer at Artest, and instead got some of us, these referees need to get this settled, and settled quick, because this could end up being a terrible situation if these fans are going to try to get involved.”

It’s at this point, Ron Artest picks his head up to see what the commotion was about, but Reggie Miller is able to keep an arm on his chest to keep him from moving, and he flips off the fans before lying his head back down.

Ben Wallace, the whole reason the two teams got into it with each other, is now walking away, seeming to accept the fact that he wouldn’t be able to get to Artest, and wanted the whole incident to die down.

It was quickly stated by officials that Ben Wallace, Ron Artest, and Stephen Jackson would all be ejected, as the three were led by arena security individually to their respective locker rooms, making sure nobody else tried anything from the stands.

The game would end with a Pacers 99-90 victory, and following the game Ben Wallace would receive a two game suspension, and Ron Artest would receive a 25,000 dollar fine for flipping off the fans, in which he responded with “They’re lucky that beer didn’t hit me.”

The Pistons would release a statement and warned when they found the fan responsible for the throw, they’d receive a three year ban from the stadium.

But, with that, the incident was over and both teams moved forward with their season, and deep down, perhaps ready for their next regular season matchup.

Notes:
Yeah, I’m back again. The world shitting itself kept me busy for a bit, but with that being said, here’s a new TL. We’re going to keep the infamous Malice in the Palace from happening and see if that can keep that brewing Indiana Pacers dynasty from collapsing in on itself. Enjoy the teaser.

 

[Ayub]

Interested to see this play out, not sure if the Pacers as they are with Jermaine O'Neal, Stephen Jackson and Ron Artest are enough to beat the Spurs or any of the teams that come out of the 2000s western conference though, I'm curious who the Pacers will get to give them that little extra bit of firepower.

 

[OriiGiins]

Chapter Two: A Nasty Rematch

The regular season would play itself out, where both teams wouldn’t get into a noteworthy incident with the other when they played each other, surprisingly.

The Indiana Pacers would clinch the second seed behind the Miami Heat and they’d face the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round who was dispatched easily in five, with Ron Artest leading the way with his two way play.

The next round would be a rematch with the Detroit Pistons from the previous year’s Eastern Conference Finals. The Sports media tried its best to play up the history between the two teams, and speculated if anything would break out due to the intensity of the playoffs.

Game One would see the Pacers cruise to an easy 89-75 victory, where Reggie Miller would turn back time and put up 35 points and six three pointers to lead his team. Game Two would be closer, even with a Pistons 56-39 halftime lead, but the Pacers would storm back, and take the 2-0 lead going into Detroit.

Game Three would be where things heated up between the two. Ben Wallace would admit years later that, “I had a personal grudge against Ron [Artest]. November just bothered the hell out of me, and with a 0-2 hole we were sitting in, I knew I needed to do something to help our chances.”

It was obvious from the tip-off that Wallace would guard Artest, and tried all that he could to get under the man’s skin. Trash talk, hand slapping, invading his personal space, anything he possibly could to get under his skin, but for the first three quarters, it looked like Artest would keep his cool.

That was until the fourth quarter, where Deja Vu struck and with a wide open basket, Wallace would shove Artest from behind, similar to what he had done in November, and that’s what finally got to Artest. Getting up immediately, he didn’t hesitate and swung at Wallace, missing and grazing his shoulder, but Wallace grinned as the two were quickly separated, knowing he finally got what he needed.

Artest was obviously ejected, while Wallace received only a flagrant one. With their best player gone, the Pistons were able to easily cut the series lead in half with a 100-84 victory. Artest refused to speak to the media, while Wallace shrugged it off saying “It is what it is.” Artest would be suspended for a pivotal Game Four for throwing a punch, and with his absence, the Pistons once again got an easy 89-75 victory, with the series now tied back up 2-2 going back to Indiana.

Game Five wouldn’t be any better for the Pacers. Holding your opponent to 76 points typically means you’d end up enjoying a victory, however the Pacers would be held to only 60 points. Reggie Miller would shoot 0-6 from 3, Stephen Jackson would shoot 4-13 from the floor, and Ron Artest, back from suspension, would have only 7 points. The Pacers were pushed to the brink with a 3-2 Pistons series lead.

“It’s my fault we’re in this hole. I got myself suspended and tonight, I just sucked ass. I have to lead by example if we don’t wanna go home.” Artest’s famous, what you could call a promise, before Game Six.

Lead he would, finishing with a triple double with 35 points, on 13-17 shooting, including 6 threes, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, Artest’s focused performance allowed the Pacers to stay alive at 110-95. Game Seven was do or die.

Back and forth the game went, until the fourth quarter. With 8:23 left to go in the game, Chauncey Billups would drive down the lane, and end up ripping his hamstring, immediately going down clutching the back of his leg, while the Pacers used it for a fast break score, to tie the game at 84. The Pistons, however, wouldn’t just roll over and die with their best player’s uncertain status in the locker room. Ben Wallace would get three blocks in a row, and a fast break of their own would give them the lead back.

Back and forth again throughout the waning moments, and with 1:03 left, up by 3, Reggie Miller would turn the ball over and in an ironic replay from the year previous, Tayshaun Prince would take the ball and attempt the tying three on a fast break, only for Miller to barely be able to come in from behind and block it as it left his hands. A dagger by Artest, a miss inside by Wallace, and a few free throws later, the Indiana Pacers were going onto their second Eastern Conference in a row.

The Miami Heat stood in the way this time. Dwyane Wade, not so arguably, their best player would suffer the fate of Chauncey Billups, going down in Game Five of a 2-2 tied series, with a broken rib. It kept him out of Game Six and hindered him greatly in Game Seven, both Pacers wins, to once again, win a series while trailing 3-2.

The sports media began to question if perhaps luck was on the side of the Pacers. Perhaps they were lucky Artest only received one game for trying to clock Ben Wallace, they surely were lucky for both Billups and Wade to get injured in pivotal moments. But would they be lucky enough to overcome the 2005 Westeren Conference Champions, the San Antonio Spurs?