The NBA playoffs continue. Today, the Knicks traveled to the Pacers to face the Pacers, and in the end they lost to the Pacers 89-121, a big loss. In this game, the Knicks' three musketeers felt sluggish. DiVincenzo, who scored 35 points in the last game, scored just seven points on 3-of-13 shooting today. Brunson scored 18 points on 6-of-17 shooting from beyond the three-point line, and Hart scored just two points on 0-of-6 shooting. The Knicks made 10-of-36 shooting and 1-of-13 from three-point range, so it makes sense that they would be able to pick up a big loss.
In fact, before this round of the series started, many fans had already begun to remind Thibodeau that his way of employing people was extremely dangerous. In this year's playoffs, Hart played almost 48 minutes per game, while Brunson and DiVincenzo also played more than 44 minutes in each game. In Thibodeau's coaching philosophy, he even wants the starters to play the full 48 minutes. But the intensity of the playoffs is not as intense as the regular season, and the playoffs are filled with a lot of physical confrontation and the defensive intensity is extremely fierce. Even if you're an iron man, you'll be put to the test with such a high level of defense in every game. That's a huge human drain.
So today's game Thibodeau tasted the consequences, and the Knicks three musketeers, no matter how strong they are, have no strength to continue their outstanding performance today. Next is a better opportunity for the Pacers. Because the Pacers have always been a team that is very much in favor of more rotation, their bench lineup is strong. And manager Carlisle will not blindly use the main players. So you're the Pacers' starters, they're very physical. They will have the upper hand in the long tug-of-war.
Many people don't pay attention to what kind of record the Knicks will achieve, they pay more attention to whether the Knicks' three musketeers can play healthily. Brunson has finally shown his superstar qualities now, and if he suffers an injury under Thibodeau, it may not be what fans want to see. After all, it was under Thibodeau's coaching that the superstar Rose suffered an injury that caused the rose to wither. So we prefer to see players finish their careers healthy and healthy, rather than seeing them suffer major injuries under the stubbornness of a coach.
Not long ago, the league anonymously launched a poll on which coaches and players least wanted to be coached. Thibodeau topped the leaderboard and was a long way off second place. This fully proves that Thibodeau's way of employing people is not recognized by many players. It's time for him to change his coaching philosophy.