Is there any parity that NBA fans have finally called here for a long time? In the 2020s, several great loser teams have reached the top.
The Indiana Pacers’ incredible run to the NBA Finals is all that fans can expect in this league. Despite not a team stacked up with the superstars, Pacer was absolutely incredible.
The NBA Finals ratings were not strong, but the same cannot be said about the quality of basketball, which is played on the most epic stage in basketball.
The Pacers are a team led by a single superstar from Tyreese Halliburton. And while Stephen A. Smith has questioned the status of Halliburton’s superstar, he doesn’t deny that he is the best player on a team full of great talent.
However, there will never be an Indiana Pacers’ world championship. In fact, outside of the first round series against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Pacers were less favourable teams in each of the playoff battles.
A great victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder has made the Pacers the latest team in the last decade to play deep playoff runs despite being underdogs.
After winning Game 3 against Thunder, the Pacers now have nine wins in this playoff run, having a better record than their team.
This ties them together to win second as a loser during the NBA playoff run just behind the Miami Heat. You can see the complete list below.
| Weak team (playoff run year) | I’ll win as a loser |
| Miami Heat (2023) | 10 |
| Indiana Pacers (2025) | 9 |
| Miami Heat (2020) | 9 |
| Houston Rockets (1995) | 9 |
| Atlanta Hawks (2021) | 8 |
| New York Knicks (1999) | 8 |
Looking at this table, it is instantly clear that the 2020s are so kind to the underdog team.
Four of the six best underdog runs in the NBA playoffs have come the last decade. In fact, every decade other than last year, over the last decade, the underdog team has at least played in the final of the conference.
And of these four teams, three have reached the NBA Finals. The Miami Heat have done this feat twice in 2020 and 2023, achieving the Indiana Pacers this season.
Looking at NBA history over the past five seasons, we see new trends. Teams with multiple All-Stars and stacked rosters aren’t always successful.
The table below lists all NBA teams with multiple All-Stars over the past five seasons.
| Team (year) | All-Stars of the Season | We’ve reached the playoff stage |
| Los Angeles Lakers (2021) | 2 – Anthony Davis, LeBron James | First round |
| Boston Celtics (2021) | 2 – Jason Tatum, Jalen Brown | First round |
| Philadelphia 76ers | 2 – Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid | Eastern Conference Finals |
| Brooklyn Net (2021) | 3 – Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Harden | Second round |
| Utah Jazz (2021) | 3 – Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell, Mike Conley | Second round |
| Raclippers (2021) | 2 – Kauhi Leonard, Paul George | Western Conference Finals |
| Phoenix Suns (2021) | 2 – Chris Paul, Devin Booker | NBA Finals |
| Cleveland Cavaliers (2022) | 2 – Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen | Play-in Tournament |
| Chicago Bulls (2022) | 2 – Zach Labine, Demar Delozan | First round |
| Brooklyn Net (2022) | 2 – Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving | First round |
| Utah Jazz (2022) | 2 – Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell | First round |
| Milwaukee Bucks (2022) | 2 – Giannis Antetokomp, Khris Middleton | Second round |
| Philadelphia 76ers (2022) | 2 – James Harden, Joel Embiid | Second round |
| Phoenix Suns (2022) | 2 – Chris Paul – Devin Booker | Second round |
| Boston Celtics (2022) | 2 – Jason Tatum, Jalen Brown | NBA Finals |
| Golden State Warriors (2022) | 3 – Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins | NBA Championship Winner |
| Dallas Mavericks (2023) | 2 – Luka Donsic, Kyrie Irving | Missed the playoffs |
| Milwaukee Bucks (2023) | 2 – Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jrue Holiday | First round |
| Sacramento Kings (2023) | 2 – De’aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis | First round |
| The Memphis Grizzlies (2023) | 2-Yes Morant, Ear Jackson Jr. | First round |
| Boston Celtics (2023) | 2 – Jason Tatum, Jalen Brown | Eastern Conference Finals |
| Milwaukee Bucks (2024) | 2 – Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard | First round |
| Philadelphia 76ers (2024) | 2 – Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey | First round |
| Phoenix Suns (2024) | 2 – Kevin Durant, Devin Booker | First round |
| Los Angeles Lakers (2024) | 2 – LeBron James, Anthony Davis | First round |
| Raclippers (2024) | 2 – Kauhi Leonard, Paul George | First round |
| Minnesota Timberwolves (2024) | 2 – Anthony Edwards, Karl Anthony Towns | Western Conference Finals |
| Boston Celtics (2024) | 2 – Jason Tatum, Jalen Brown | NBA Championship Winner |
| Dallas Mavericks (2025) | 2 – Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving | Play-in Tournament |
| Milwaukee Bucks (2025) | 2 – Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard | First round |
| Cleveland Cavaliers (2025) | 3 – Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley | Second round |
| Boston Celtics (2025) | 2 – Jason Tatum, Jalen Brown | Second round |
| New York Knicks (2025) | 2 – Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns | Eastern Conference Finals |
| Oklahoma City Thunder (2025) | 2 – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams | NBA Finals (In progress*) |
Over the past five seasons, 34 teams with two or more All-Stars in the NBA have played. Only teams that were unable to reach the playoff stage (beyond the play-in tournament), many of these teams did not go well.
Of these 28 teams, 10 reached the conference final stage, five reached the NBA Finals, and only two won the NBA Championship.
On the other side, 14 of these teams only reached the first round of the playoffs, while only seven rounds reached the second round.
This chart shows that having teams with multiple All-Stars can lead to success, but these teams have a very low actual success rate.
The Indiana Pacers could be their third team in five years, winning the NBA Championship and winning one active All-Star on the roster.
