Pacers VS Knicks G6
This series is becoming more and more abstract, and it seems that the focus is not on how the Pacers and the Knicks play, but on how many people are left in the Knicks in the marathon race of the long playoffs. Thibodeau's iron man Hart was also injured, and King Kong Huluwa became the six Ultraman brothers.
Of course, Hart may insist on fighting with injuries, and G6 is not a life-and-death battle for the Knicks after all, so this fight is just a break. The G4 scene also gave people the impression that the Knicks had run out of oil, but as a result, Tianwangshan saw that they were still good men. The spirit of the two teams returning to their home stadium is always renewed, and I don't know if this plot can continue in G7.
Objectively speaking, the G6 Pacers are still not the same as before. In the first five games, both teams played in style, with the Pacers running their fast break and the Knicks rushing their rebounds without delaying each other. The ugly picture of G5 made Carlisle extremely angry, and he almost shouted clean after the half-time game, and he couldn't bear the team's messy rebounding protection after the game.
But the Pacers players also have something to say, don't we usually practice to sneak and run fast, serve the baseline ball quickly, and chase behind the opponent? Isn't our regular season a rotational disciplined team? It's the easiest thing to do to get used to it, and you have to take it one step at a time to change your habits, just like in the last round against the Bucks, the Pacers' defense has to be revised little by little to get to the point where you can see it, and this round also has a learning process.
If you study again, you're going to be out.
You'd be hard-pressed to argue that the Pacers' G6 offense and defense were better than before, Harry's delay in calling Bronson was just that, McBride's three-point opportunities always came up, and Achiuwa was still not particularly uncomfortable on the offensive end. The Knicks' offense stalled, first because Bronson drove late enough that Nesmith's entanglement of him did work, though only intermittently.
The real improvement for the Pacers is obviously rebounding. It's useful for the coach to be angry, the Pacers lost 24 rebounds in the last game, and won 12 in this game. Thinking about it soon, I will talk about it when I get stuck in the basket desperately.
The Pacers really don't need to deliberately grab the rhythm, and there are many ways to dismantle the Knicks defense. The opposite side is already playing four guards, and when Harden is not on the court, Achiuwa lacks height as a center, which means that the Pacers can play the height card after landing the position.
The biggest highlight of G6 is that the Pacers can always find a big and small mismatch, and punish the Knicks for depleting frontcourt resources with the high madness of Sika, Turner, and Topin. As a result, the Knicks' defense was completely dismantled, the paint area and rebounding were blown up, and the Pacers played the game with only 8 points on the fast break.
This may be the first time in the series that the Pacers have realized their true strengths beyond the distinct team style. The Knicks have the label of being wilder and more ferocious, but being wild and ferocious requires physical support, and without OG and Miro, the Knicks are a real small team. The Pacers are usually more like a featherweight fighter who wins by effective hit points, and when they meet the Knicks, it stands to reason that they need to win that way. But now the Knicks are a more powerful brother than the Pacers, and the fastest way for the Pacers to solve the fight is probably to knock him out with a heavy punch.
That's what the G6 Pacers did, and they had to keep doing it.
But then again, although the Pacers played the size advantage in the frontcourt in G6, they were by no means brutal, and the overall style of play was still full of order. The outside line looks for the misplaced pass on the inside, and the inside line attracts the defense and then transfers to the outside, which is well organized, and the offensive quality is indeed top-notch. I can't even think that the Timberwolves want the Pacers to pass the ball......
Extreme short rotations are a habit for the Knicks, but it won't be easy for them to get through without a forward at all (Hart counts as a forward for the Knicks). G7 could be the ultimate test of Thibodeau basketball, and in the face of a game where there is no way back, and the OG who has only recovered from light training, G6 is already Hart who rubs his abdomen repeatedly, will they appear on the court?
If the Pacers continue to stare in a daze, make mistakes on the defensive end, and be intimidated by the atmosphere and whistle in the garden, then the Knicks' enthusiasm is fully in their hands for a crushing battle that starts in the first quarter, at which point you will unlock a life-and-death Siakam. The Knicks have to move fast, and even in the time of a game, the Knicks can't afford to spend it. The Pacers have plenty of manpower and stamina, and they are the de facto upper hand. If they calm down, the Knicks won't stand a chance.