G3 said after the game that the Knicks and the 76ers were too affected by the blows, especially the number of fouls at the No. 5 position on both sides would dominate the outcome of the game.
Mitchell Robinson is indeed absent from G4 due to injury, and it is a bit difficult for the Knicks to deal with it, because G4 is still at home in Philadelphia, and Harden is certainly worthy of Embiid, but sooner or later the foul count will reach a level he can't afford. Achiuwa delivered a qualified transition center performance in G3, but it was a disaster against Embiid. In this case, Thibodeau should have pinched Embiid earlier when he fell to the low post to avoid Harden being eaten too much and causing the foul count to be uncontrollable.
Thibodeau didn't do that. In the first half, Hatten did not foul. But with 5 fouls at the speed of light in the third quarter, the Knicks were not in a good position.
If Achiuwa still had a mixed contribution in G3, G4 was a generation shorter in front of Reed, and all kinds of abstract finishes under the basket. That's it, after all, the Knicks can win by numbers, and they are good players if they can rush to rebounds.
The key is, who will defend Embiid?
The answer given by the Knicks was OG Anunoby.
It's a realisation, but a reasonable choice. Because OG did often play against the center in the season when the Raptors didn't have a serious center. Of course, just talking about single defense, OG will definitely not be able to stop the emperor, but there is only one section of time, and it can still hold on.
What's more, because the Knicks knew the disadvantage of this group, they made them more active in the pinch shot. As a result, in the fourth quarter, Embiid was 0 of 5 and scored only 1 point. The 76ers offense was powered off.
The strange and inexplicable cause and effect on the basketball court is presented again in this game. The situation that was not conducive to the Knicks disrupted the rhythm of the Emperor and put the 76ers in passivity. And this X-factor basically became the winner and loser of G4.
Let's talk about a few other interesting points.
Hart was 0-of-7 from the field, scoreless in the open game, and had five turnovers. But he grabbed 17 rebounds, five assists and three blocks. Hart's weird style of play reminds me of last year's Clippers vs. Suns, G1's Wei Shao. Probably the most representative performance of the energy player;
Not only did OG contribute a huge amount defensively, but the offense also carried the ball and was the second scoring point for the Knicks after Bronson. He and Hart had a lot of tough shots to the basket, and it felt like Thibodeau was deliberately setting it up — they wanted Embiid's foul count, but the number of shots was limited;
McBride continued his rise in the regular season, and the series was very explosive, with both fixed-point and pick-and-roll shots, as well as leading Maxey. Most of the players on both sides were impressive, young and energetic, and the two veterans of Lowry and Batum explained the meaning of experience. Only Bojan and Hield were the two goalscorers pulling their hips;
Bojan was injured and played only 1 minute. The Knicks rotation was reduced to seven. Thibodeau's usual limit employment has an unexpected effect at this time - this intensity sprinkles water, and everyone doesn't feel tired at all!
The 76ers didn't let Bronson go left-handed, but Bronson still had all kinds of tricks to go left-handed, a "I prefer to be reluctant" masterpiece of carrying production, too showy;
Embiid is on the line most of the time, and his destructive power against the Knicks' defense is also there. But in the fourth quarter, the defensive focus began to lose and the offense was lost. He did his best this round, but the tone of the wind was there, and it was estimated that he still had to book a tank seat in the summer.