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Come Fan with UsFriday, August 7, 2026

Larry Bird Thinks His Pacers Are Too Soft

The Indiana Pacers picked up a bad loss on Tuesday night that saw its share of physical altercations. Unfortunately for Indiana, the majority of the physicality came from the Miami Heat as they cruised to a 115-83 victory.

The hard fouls -- specifically those from Dexter Pittman and Udonis Haslem -- led to quite a bit of outrage on the internet and some unhappy comments in the locker room afterward.

Nobody seemed to be quite as upset as Pacers’ president of basketball operations Larry Bird, however, as he unloaded on his team for being “soft” in Tuesday night’s drubbing.

That comment will almost certainly lead to one of the Pacers trying to prove they’re not soft in Game 6 and then, maybe, this series will look the way basketball was played back in Bird’s heyday.

For more on the Miami Heat, check out Peninsula Is Mightier and SB Nation Tampa Bay. To stay up-to-date on the Indiana Pacers, head over to Indy Cornrows and SB Nation Indiana.

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