His teams were buoyed by the great play of superstars such as Mel Daniels, George McGinnis, Bob Netolicky, Rick Mount, Freddie Lewis and Roger Brown.

As a result of the Owens trade, they were left as bystanders in the midst of one of the deepest drafts in NBA history—including such future stars as Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Sam Perkins, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton.

In February 1989, the team traded veteran center Herb Williams to the Dallas Mavericks for future NBA Sixth Man-of-the Year Detlef Schrempf.

Chuck Person and point guard Micheal Williams were traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the off-season, and the Pacers got Pooh Richardson and Sam Mitchell in return.

They stormed past Shaquille O'Neal and the Orlando Magic in a first-round sweep to earn their first NBA playoff series win, and pulled off an upset by defeating the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks in the Conference semifinals.

With the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals tied going into Game 5 in New York, and the Pacers trailing the Knicks by 15 points early in the fourth quarter, Reggie Miller scored 25 points—including five 3-point field goals.

[19] The Pacers duplicated their 52–30 record in 1995–96, but were hurt severely by an injury to Reggie Miller's eye socket in April, from which he was not able to return until Game 5 of their first-round series against the Hawks.

Miller and Rik Smits both made the All-Star team that year, and in the playoffs, the Pacers breezed past the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks before falling to the Chicago Bulls in a seven-game Eastern Conference Finals.

In the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, the Pacers won the Central Division with a 33–17 record and swept the Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers before falling to the Knicks in a six-game Eastern Conference Finals.

[20] The off-season brought sweeping changes to the Pacers' lineup, as Rik Smits and coach Larry Bird retired, Chris Mullin returned to the Golden State Warriors, Mark Jackson signed a long-term contract with Toronto, and Dale Davis was traded to Portland for Jermaine O'Neal,[21] who went on to average 12.9 points per game in his first year as a starter.

The Pacers got off to a 13–2 start in 2002–03 but hit the wall after the All-Star break thanks in no small part to Ron Artest's multiple suspensions and family tragedies befalling Jermaine O'Neal, Jamaal Tinsley and Austin Croshere.

Despite this, and a 36–46 record, the Pacers had a very strong finish to the season, which included a desperate attempt to steal the 8th seed from the Atlanta Hawks, and dramatic improvement in forwards Danny Granger and Mike Dunleavy.

During the 2009 off–season, the Pacers traded declining Jermaine O'Neal along with Nathan Jawai to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for Roy Hibbert, T. J. Ford, Rasho Nesterović and Maceo Baston.

[73] During the 2013 off-season, the Pacers made strengthening their bench a priority, resulting in the acquisitions of point guard C. J. Watson, and forwards Chris Copeland and Luis Scola, the latter being acquired via trade with the Phoenix Suns.

[81] On August 1, 2014, Paul George, who was playing in a Team USA scrimmage in preparation for the FIBA World Cup, suffered a catastrophic open fracture to his right leg (tibia and fibula) while trying to defend James Harden on a fast break.

[88] The team made several off-season moves, acquiring new starters Jeff Teague and Thaddeus Young, as well as key bench players Al Jefferson and Aaron Brooks.

Holdover Myles Turner was joined by reserve–turned–starter Domantas Sabonis, as well as new acquisitions Malcolm Brogdon, T. J. Warren, and Jeremy Lamb, who was slated to become a top reserve once all–star guard Victor Oladipo returned from injury.

[105] On January 16, 2021, Victor Oladipo was traded to the Houston Rockets as a part of a four-team deal that sent James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets and Caris LeVert to Indiana.

[115] At the 2023 trade deadline, the team acquired three future second round picks, Jordan Nwora, Serge Ibaka, as well as Indiana–native and former Pacer, George Hill in exchange for the draft rights to Juan Pablo Vaulet.

[129] Oshae Brissett left the Pacers to sign a contract with the Boston Celtics while the team decided against bringing back veteran George Hill but later re-signed James Johnson.

The Pacers wore these maroon and gold "Hickory" (the name and colors of the fictional High School from the film) uniforms for several home games and a few select road contests during the 2015–16 season.

On the other hand, the Knicks consistently built teams around Patrick Ewing, John Starks, Charles Oakley, Allan Houston, Larry Johnson, Latrell Sprewell, as well as former Pacer legend Herb Williams.

The Knicks consisted of All–Star Carmelo Anthony, J. R. Smith, Raymond Felton, Tyson Chandler, Jason Kidd, Iman Shumpert, Rasheed Wallace, Kenyon Martin, and Marcus Camby.

The Pacers were now led by All–Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton, joined by Myles Turner, Pascal Siakam, Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard in the starting lineup.

The "Nova Knicks" in turn were led by their own All–Star point guard, Jalen Brunson, while other key players included Julius Randle, OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson, Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart.

Indiana was seen as title contenders, having the 1st seed in the Eastern Conference, and the best record in the league, led by Reggie Miller, Jermaine O'Neal, Ron Artest, and Al Harrington.

The following season saw improvements for both teams, from Miami's acquisitions of Ray Allen and Chris Andersen, to the emergence of Paul George and Lance Stephenson in the absence of Danny Granger due to a season–ending injury.

Wade received a retroactive flagrant foul for hitting Stephenson in the head, another incident that the Pacers, notably Paul George, felt was a dirty play.

Likewise, Miami's key players again consisted of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Ray Allen, Mario Chalmers, as well as newcomers Greg Oden and Michael Beasley.

Then in 1993, Larry Brown joined the Pacers franchise and led the team to many playoff appearances as Reggie Miller blossomed into a superstar and eventual Hall of Famer.