The longest river

Chapter 138 The Gorilla Sighs

The situation is very unfavorable for the Knicks.

In the crucial moment, it was Ewing who stepped up for the Knicks.

Larry Johnson missed a three-pointer, but Ewing grabbed the offensive rebound over Schmitz and Davis and scored on a second-chance opportunity!
Moreover, after scoring, Ewing deliberately turned around and glared at Bird on the Pacers' bench.

As a player who played in the same era and even defeated Bird in the playoffs, he was clearly angered by Bird's previous comments.

Bird finally stood up at this moment.

However, he ignored Ewing and instead made a new tactical gesture to Mark Jackson.

The Pacers used the same tactics in the frontcourt, but Miller changed his choice after the pick-and-roll. Instead of cutting to the basket, he moved to the left, received the ball, and took a three-pointer over Ewing after being mismatched.

"Shh!"

With a crisp sound, Miller's three-pointer came down.

The kind of cold shooting that Miller experienced against the Trail Blazers in the regular season is a low-probability event. He is most of the league's best shooter, especially in the playoffs.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

It was bad news for the Knicks, but great news for the fans in the arena because the Pacers' two outside shooters were both on fire tonight!
Especially since his expression at that moment was one of helplessness.

At his peak, he was the most terrifying monster in the league, not only able to make the interior defense impenetrable, but also very strong in defending smaller players.

However, due to knee problems in recent years, his movement speed has decreased significantly, and he is powerless to deal with this dislocation.

Moreover, after the offensive and defensive transition, the Pacers changed their defender on Ewing from Schmitz to the more agile Davis.

Davis kept pace with Ewing, then Schmitz contested the shot, and Ewing's low-post attack missed the basket.

Bird's gesture just now wasn't a tactical adjustment; it was aimed at Ewing!

However, Bird didn't have much personal grudge involved; he was already nearing the end of his career when he was defeated by Ewing due to injuries.

That was more of a game strategy. Ewing was the Knicks' anchor, and wearing him down was the most cost-effective option.

This will continue to be demonstrated in the next round.

Miller continued to use screens to attack Ewing, who lunged to close out, but Miller simply gathered the ball and drove right past him.

Oakley rushed out of the paint to intercept the ball, and Miller, seeing this, lobbed it to Davis under the basket, who then violently slammed it into the rim with both hands.

In this possession, the Pacers skillfully used spacing basketball, lobbing the center out of the paint and then pulling the power forward out of the paint to complete the attack.

The cheers that had just subsided rang out again.

Albert wanted to say something more, but found that the words just disappeared from his lips.

"The Knicks have no way to stop the Pacers' offense."

Ernie Johnson made a summary.

The Knicks actually played quite well offensively tonight, but their defense was completely overwhelmed by the Pacers' spacing system.

Turning back, the Pacers' defense adjusted again, with Miller and Young switching on defense, and Young moving to the strong side to guard Houston.

When Ewing started posting up, Yang Shuai would double-team him.

When Ewing chose to pass the ball to Houston, Yang Shuai returned to defense and interfered with Houston's shot.

Before the playoffs began, Yang Shuai had already improved his help defense ability to the maximum of 83 through training.

While it's still uncertain whether that's enough to defend Tim Hardaway, it's sufficient to disrupt Houston's catch-and-shoot style of play.

Houston's shot missed the rim, and Ewing was also blocked by Davis from jumping. The rebound was eventually grabbed by Schmitz.

Ewing was called for a rebounding foul for being too aggressive in his attempt to get the ball.

It was clear that after being targeted in a series of attacks, Ewing was unable to perform well on both offense and defense, and his mentality had begun to waver.

Just then, the whistle blew from the sidelines, and the Knicks substituted Starks for Childs.

Starks came up to guard Miller, and in the first possession, he bypassed the screen and limited Miller's ability to receive the ball.

When it comes to familiarity with Miller and defensive effectiveness, one has to be his old rival who "met" with Miller back in the day.

Seeing this, Schmitz shook off Ewing and drove towards the basket, but his final shot after receiving a pass from Jackson was disrupted by Oakley.

After the first possession of the game, the Knicks finally managed to force another possession.

Van Gundy, standing on the sidelines, couldn't help but wipe his sweat.

In previous regular season games between the Knicks and the Pacers, either Mark Jackson hadn't joined the Pacers yet, or Schmitz was absent.

Now, facing the Pacers at their "full strength," he felt so frustrated on the defensive end, like his punches were hitting cotton, that he was sweating bullets.

Fortunately, at the crucial moment, Starks, whom he had personally benched, saved him.

In the Knicks' frontcourt, Ewing didn't continue to establish position in the low post, and the Knicks' offense shifted from the strong side to the weak side, attempting to break through Johnson's low post.

But at that moment, the Pacers switched their defense again, with Miller switching onto Starks.

Johnson's low-post back-to-the-basket attempt against Mark Jackson, the originator of the "five-second back-to-the-basket" rule, failed to impress him, and his shot from the baseline ultimately missed the rim.

Then, when he turned around and found that Miller still hadn't shaken off Starks, Mark Jackson made a new tactical gesture.

The Pacers also executed a strong-side to weak-side transition, with Schmitz moving to the weak side to set a high screen for Young. Using Schmitz's screen, Young moved back to the sideline, received a pass from Jackson, and launched another three-pointer.

Ewing could only watch as Yang Shuai made his move.

14-7, the Pacers have started to pull away!

Albert had now fallen completely silent.

Ernie Johnson, however, was already bursting with excitement.

"I feel like I could be sitting in Larry's position right now!"

Since the start of the game, Bird has only gotten up from the bench once, the one when Ewing glared at him and made a tactical gesture.

For the rest of the time, Bird seemed to be completely offline, with little change in expression on the sidelines.

The Pacers' tactical changes on the court, including various defensive switches, were all made by the players themselves.

Of course, as a professional commentator, this is more of a joke, like "My grandma and Jordan could both win championships."

With tactical dominance and the team having gelled, Bird didn't need to make any in-game adjustments.

While Yang Shuai's two game-winning shots against the Knicks last season were certainly spectacular, now, "when you have a large lead, why do you still need a game-winning shot?"

Of course, the Pacers' current performance is clearly not solely due to Bird's efforts.

From the Pacers drafting Yang Shuai, to Bird's arrival, and then Mark Jackson's addition, the Pacers have become what they are today.

However, it was at this moment that many people understood that Bird's pre-game comment, "You guys overestimated some things," was not underestimating the opponent, but stating some facts.

It's just that such a fact seems unrealistic at first glance, and most people are unwilling to believe it!
"Defend! Defend!"

Once the fans realized this, they became even more excited and began to shout in unison.

Larry Johnson turned and drove hard to the basket, but Davis blocked it once again.

But it was Ewing again; he grabbed the offensive rebound and finished with a powerful two-handed dunk!

After dunking, Ewing pounded his chest and roared. "The Gorilla" may be old, but he can still cause a stir.

Ewing's dunk boosted the Knicks' morale.

Looking back, it's clear that the Knicks' defensive intensity is much higher.

However, as Miller and Yang Shuai continued to penetrate the defense, the Knicks' defensive formation quickly showed weaknesses again.

To put it bluntly, both the Knicks and the Heat have too slow mobility at their power forward and center positions, making it difficult for them to keep up with the Pacers' spacing system in terms of defensive rotations.

And perhaps they were genuinely relaxed, as the Pacers' entire team was on fire tonight, with Schmitz sinking another jump shot from the high post.

The Knicks players' enthusiasm was instantly dampened by a bucket of cold water.

However, Ewing has not given up.

He gets double-teamed in the low post, so he receives the ball directly at the high post free throw line.

After his teammates spread out, he drove to the basket with the ball and put it in the hoop with a floater while moving.

After scoring, Ewing retreated to defend and applauded his teammates, whose morale was somewhat low.

Seeing this, Yang Shuai couldn't help but take a sidelong look.

From his pre-match remarks to his performance on the field, Ewing is a respectable opponent.

"Go for it, Ewing, you can do it!"

After a long silence, Albert also shouted from the commentary booth.

Throughout his more than 30-year career as a commentator, Ewing and Reed were the reasons he always supported the Knicks; they were both perfect team leaders.

However, before Albert could finish speaking, his words were instantly drowned out by cheers from the crowd.

The Pacers set a screen, and Miller drained another three-pointer over Ewing.

Furthermore, Ewing lost control of his body after diving for the ball, which also brought Miller down, resulting in a foul being called by the referee.

This is still a 3+1.

Miller was pulled up from the ground by Yang Shuai and Jackson, and he seemed to be fine.

He is also an ironman on par with Malone, playing in 6 out of 9 regular seasons, with the most missed games being only 8, including this season when he only missed 1 game.

He knows how to protect himself.

Miller goes to the free throw line.

Yu Wei, who had scored 8 points, looked up at the scoreboard and saw that the score difference was already approaching double digits. He couldn't help but sigh as he looked down.

He also knows that the Knicks' problem lies on the defensive end, but that's not something he can change right now.

-Dividing line-

①：1990年季后赛尼克斯首轮1比2落后凯尔特队，尤因在G4砍下44分13板5助攻7抢断2盖帽率队扳平大比分，并且在G5生死战砍下31分8板10助攻4盖帽的“准三双”率队逆转淘汰凯尔特人。

(End of this chapter)