“In 49 states it’s just basketball, but this is Indiana.”
This quote is deeply ingrained in Indiana’s basketball culture and became the creative foundation of our 2025 Playoff campaign, guiding how we showed up, told stories, and engaged fans across social platforms. It brought that belief to life on a national and global level, positioning Pacers basketball as distinct, authentic, emotional, and rooted in culture.
While celebrating wins and on-court success was pivotal, our approach extended beyond traditional playoff coverage. We elevated moments in ways that felt unmistakably like our brand–standing out through creative formats, real-time reactions, and fan-driven storytelling that reflected the identity of basketball in Indiana.
From 16 teams down to two in the NBA Finals, every piece of content, reaction, and activation was designed to strengthen fan connection, elevate our national and global presence, and make this playoff run a must-follow social experience.
From the start of the playoffs, our strategy was to treat every game as a moment—not just a result. We built a social-first, multi-platform campaign designed to capture what made this run different: dramatic finishes, raw emotion, and a fan base that believed from the start. By leaning into those moments as they happened, we kept our core audience continuously engaged, while also attracting the attention and support of a broader audience.
Rather than relying on traditional final score graphics or game highlights, we focused on how games were won and why this team resonated with so many. Late-game heroics, buzzer beaters, and pure emotional reaction from the team and fans alike became the foundation of our storytelling.
We reinforced belief with nightly manifesto-style posts once we reached the epitome of the posteason, the NBA Finals, that acted as rallying cries, broke down iconic plays through alternate angles (think “every angle of Tyrese Haliburton’s game-winning shot) and stop motion and used custom illustrations and photo manipulations to playfully reference opponents we defeated. The message was consistent: this team wasn’t an underdog—it was simply overlooked.
Content evolved with the momentum of the series and the reactions of fans across platforms. Live coverage, reaction clips, and engagement prompts were published in real time, often minutes after the final whistle, allowing fans to relive moments together and drive conversation the deeper into the playoffs we went.
A viral TikTok song also amplified the campaign. Rob49’s “WTHELLY,” which organically connected to our playoff run and referenced Tyrese Haliburton, became a campaign-long partnership and included Rob49 attending games and engaging in content.
Community participation was central to execution. We consistently elevated fan voices, reactions, and personalities that organically surfaced during the run. One such moment involved a New York firefighter who went viral after being harassed for wearing his Pacers jersey in public. After seeing the story gain traction organically on social, we responded immediately, inviting him to Indianapolis for a VIP Eastern Conference Finals experience. His journey was documented and shared natively across platforms, showcasing our “Hoosier Hospitality” and reinforcing the importance of social listening.
Lastly, this playoff run carried historic weight. It marked just the second Finals appearance in franchise history and showed incredible similarities to our 2000 run, including defeating the same opponent in the same number of games in the Eastern Conference Finals. We creatively activated those parallels through graphics and video that blended archival footage with current highlights, featuring Reggie Miller and connecting generations of fans through shared moments and memories.
EXECUTION HIGHLIGHTS
Road to the NBA Finals Playoff Campaign Data
(April 14, 2025 through June 23, 2025)
