In 2011, the Indiana Pacers earned their first playoff berth since 2006. They secured the postseason place on April 6, 2011, by defeating the Washington Wizards, ending a four-season absence from the NBA playoffs.
The Pacers entered the 2010–11 season under coach Jim O’Brien, but Frank Vogel took over as interim coach in January and helped guide the team into the postseason. Indiana finished 37–45, making it one of the rare teams to qualify with a losing record under the 82-game schedule.
The team was led by All-Star forward Danny Granger, while players such as Roy Hibbert, Tyler Hansbrough, and Darren Collison also played important roles. Indiana entered the playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s eighth seed and faced the top-seeded Chicago Bulls.
A common mix-up is confusing a playoff berth with a playoff-series victory. The 2011 Pacers reached the postseason for the first time since 2006, but they did not win a series; Chicago eliminated them in five games. Indiana finally won a playoff series in 2012, defeating the Orlando Magic.