For most of the season, the Indiana Pacers have chased third place in the Eastern Conference. Which is to say, they've been striving to be the best of the rest behind Chicago and Miami.
Lately, however, this team has more closely resembled the best than the rest.
Against an elite opponent playing with a sense of urgency Friday, Indiana dominated the first 30 minutes in building a 24-point lead, and then showed grit and determination in holding off a furious, Kevin Durant-led rally to beat Oklahoma City 103-98.
With four wins in a row, the Pacers (34-21) have seized third place in the East from free-falling Orlando. Protecting that position is the primary goal for the regular season but with a resume that includes victories over the Bulls, Heat and Thunder -- among the top three teams in the NBA -- they're thinking much bigger when it comes to the postseason.
"I think we're in the conversation with all the teams you just mentioned, quite frankly," coach Frank Vogel said. "We're a good basketball team. … We've believed in ourselves all year, and I've said all year this team has no ceiling.
"When you start clicking offensively the way we're clicking, and defend the way we're capable of defending, we're shooting for the moon. We're dreaming big. I'm encouraging that every day. We're thinking big towards the end of the season."
This was an impressive performance both from Indiana's dominance in rolling up a 72-48 lead midway through the third period, but perhaps even moreso from the ability to withstand the assault from Durant, who scored 24 of his 44 points in the final 15 minutes to bring the Thunder almost all the way back.
There was no chance Oklahoma City was looking past this game. The Thunder had dropped two in a row coming in and watched its once prohibitive lead in the West shrink to one game over streaking San Antonio. Now it's a three-game skid and a one-half game lead.
"They made shots, tough shots. They’re a really good team. We respected these guys from the beginning. They have a lot of weapons. Any given night anybody can go off and score 30. But they made tough shots over our defense," Durant said. "They have a great team. They can stack up with anybody. They have inside, outside presence. They have a lot of weapons. They’re going to be tough in the East. We got a taste of it tonight."
Central to Indiana's surge has been an offense that has found its stride. The team has scored at least 100 points in five consecutive games and nine of 12 since the deadline deal with Toronto for Leandro Barbosa. Though his numbers have been modest, Barbosa's presence with George Hill in the second unit backcourt has given Indiana a formidable bench.
"Our offense is clicking," Paul George said. "Defensively, there's still room for improvement, but we're getting better. If we can continue to limit teams to one shot and keep them from driving to the lanes and still put points in the basket, we'll be all right."
Danny Granger also has come to life late in the season. He scored 13 of his 26 in the fourth quarter -- the third time in the past four games he has scored at least 13 after the third period. Granger has averaged 24.7 points in the past five while shooting 17 of 29 (.586) from the 3-point arc.
"These games are more important now," he said. "Each win can put us closer to a top seed or each loss can push us farther down. I think with that importance, I'm just playing with more of a sense of urgency."
Something of a curiosity entering the season, the Pacers now are a hot, confident team building momentum heading toward the postseason. The things they lacked a year ago in a five-game loss to the Bulls in the first round -- veteran leadership, postseason experience, scoring punch off the bench -- all have been addressed. David West has firmed up the starting five and along with Hill and Barbosa bring solid playoff resumes.
"We're clicking offensively, we're coming defensively, we're rebounding the ball well," Vogel said. "We know we can win in a variety of different ways.
"And we're doing it all without practice. Who needs practice?"
Somewhere, Allen Iverson is smiling -- almost as broadly as Vogel.
