The NBA Finals of the working man

The Indiana Pacers, the NBA’s salute to America’s heartland, are teaching us all to believe in ourselves. Loyal Scaiaholics will recall I have a rich history in Indiana, and for the past week, I’ve been telling anyone who would listen all about it.

And also people who actively tried to avoid listening.

For instance, here I am trying to scale the world’s tallest Christmas tree a few years back.

Some associates and I once drove to Indianapolis when we were in college because the Pacers’ arena held open tryouts to be public address announcer. Sure, we skipped a day of class, but look at us, now. We’re all successful and have moved to different parts of the country, but we still keep in touch and make occasional trips to re-live the olden days. None of us, however, is the PA announcer for an NBA team.

The Pacers faced long odds of winning the championship at the beginning of the season. You know who else faced long odds? The 2011 Dallas Mavericks.

“Oh, no one could beat the Miami Heat! They’ve got LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade,” pundits exclaimed. “Oh!”

But the fans wouldn’t give up. I met this gentleman outside the arena who felt strongly about the club.

After covering the 2011 NBA Finals from a spot in the press box higher than even the Chili’s blimp, I’ve seen how a community can rally around a team.

And the Mavericks overcame those odds.

So I’ve been incessantly texting associates in Indiana trying to find this particular t-shirt. If I can’t get one, University of Dayton alum Obi Toppin has been a strong contributor, so I’ll see if I can get an Obi Toppin jersey.

There’s an outside chance that’ll be an even tougher find, so in a pinch, I’ll just walk around the Metroplex without a shirt the next three days with a giant “P” painted on my chest.

An associate points out many Scaianalysis heavy deeps live in Indiana, so they’d be excited to read about this. After googling what “heavy deep” means, I really think he’s right.

So kids, the Indiana Pacers can show us all you can accomplish your dreams. You just need to believe in yourself and stay focused on the work when others doubt you. Do you need to skip class? Of course. Just make sure you have enough souvenir shirts ready when the time comes.