INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Pacers have made the state proud in their run to the NBA Finals. If Mel and Herb Simon did not purchase the team, it is very likely the Pacers would not be in Indianapolis right now.
The Simon brothers bought the Pacers for $11 million in 1983. Herb Simon is now the longest-tenured owner in the National Basketball Association and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame just before this season tipped off.
"I'm someone who has never dunked a ball or shot a 3-pointer," Herb Simon said at his induction ceremony. "How did I wind up getting this tremendous honor?"
Mel Simon passed away in 2009. The street in front of Gainbridge Fieldhouse is named in his memory.
The Pacers were in trouble the season before the Simons bought the team. The team finished 20-62, which is still the worst record in franchise history, and Market Square Arena was mostly empty during Pacers games.
Previous owners Sam Nassi and Frank Mariani openly discussed moving or folding the team after the 1982-1983 season. Indianapolis leaders, including Mayor William Hudnut, tried to find anyone in Indiana willing to buy the team.
"Before they came to see us, the same group of leaders met with five other potential owners, and they all turned them down," Herb Simon said. "As I recall, the meeting only lasted about 20 or 30 minutes, but at the end of it, we owned the team. It was incredible."
WATCH: A change of pace: Simon brothers purchase the Pacers
They purchased the team on April 27, 1983, just 10 days after the last game of the 1982-83 season.
Herb's son Steve said his father and uncle bought the Pacers because they believed Indiana deserved it.
"They did it because they wanted to be a civic partner," Steve Simon said. "They didn't have any design to own a basketball team. It's been incredibly important and meaningful for the family."
The Pacers have not won an NBA title under the Simons, but the family is optimistic they will bring the Larry O'Brien Trophy to Indianapolis.
"We just want to see the Pacers stay in the city, be a pillar of the community, win a championship, and keep going," Steve Simon said.
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