West pushed Millsap again and quickly turned around to take a fadeaway jumper with the help of the reaction force.
But this time Millsap was still aware of it.
West's shot angle was a bit high, and Millsap did not complete the block, but it still caused a lot of interference to West's shot.
"when!"
West's shot hit the basket, Cousins blocked Hibbert, and Lian Dao grabbed the defensive rebound before Granger.
[To be honest, I’ve been using the Changing Source app recently to read and catch up on new books. It allows me to switch sources and read aloud with many different sounds. It’s available on both Android and Apple.]
Millsap used one offense and one defense to prove that he is now the best player at the Knicks' fourth position.
This is important, especially when Stoudemire has difficulty regaining his form.
If Millsap cannot step up, and the Knicks want to take advantage, Lian Dao needs to move to the fourth position.
Although Lian Dao is not unable to play the fourth position, that kind of consumption will restrict his performance on the offensive end, and some losses outweigh the gains.
The situation on the court changed, and now it was Vogel's turn to have a headache.
Two insiders with three-point shooting who can open up the space.
As long as Millsap and Cousins are outside the three-point line, the opponent will not dare to shrink to the basket.
This time, Hibbert didn't dare to help defend the basket easily.
Seeing that the opponent did not dare to shrink, Lian Dao directly held the ball to break through the attack of Granger and Paojiao, flew into the inside and hit a one-handed dunk!
The Knicks started to pull away!
Madison Square Garden erupted instantly.
The Knicks' momentum on the court has also become different.
After David West's strong point was restricted, the Pacers defended well and their shortcomings in offense were completely exposed.
Danny Granger called West for a pick-and-roll from the outside and shot a three-pointer from the outside, but was still interfered by Millsap's complete switch.
Basketball struck iron, and the Pacers' offense seemed to have stalled.
If George Hill and Royce Hibbert hadn't been able to score intermittently, the game would have been ruined.
But even so, at the end of the first quarter, the Knicks still extended their lead to 8 points.
"Is it too weak? That's it, or is it a top-five defense in the NBA?"
"Why do I feel that their defense is so different from ours?"
"I think they're no different than last year."
"..."
Knicks fans have already begun discussing that, in addition to the beginning of the first quarter, the Pacers can also provide them with some interference.
But after D'Antoni's substitutions and adjustments, it feels like the Pacers are no longer a match for the Knicks.
As for the strong defense reported by the media before the game, they could not see it at all.
Knicks fans only saw Lian Dao using his breakthrough to tear down the defense, while other players fired from beyond the three-point line.
Vogel knew that this situation was normal.
The Pacers' offense is still not comparable to those of top teams, and the only thing they can show off is defense.
If they are unable to bring this advantage into play, then in a chain reaction, it will be even more impossible to play an outstanding offense.
By then a disastrous defeat will be inevitable.
"Listen, don't think about stealing or blocking shots, you just need to give them the maximum defensive pressure and interference!"
"Making them uncomfortable and difficult every time they take a shot will have achieved our defensive purpose!"
"Never lose your position to steal or block shots!"
"If we can do this, as long as the opponent's shooting percentage drops and their inside players are far away from the basket, as long as we protect the rebounds, there is still hope for the game!"
Vogel figured out the problem quickly, and he didn't believe the Knicks could stay in shape forever.
There is nothing wrong with this, but they have allowed the Knicks to get out of shape.
Especially in the face of the Knicks' mercury-like offense, some players have been blinded.
Among them, Paul George is like this. Historically, he was confused by James, but now he is confused by Lian Dao.
Especially at the end of the first quarter, he was guarded offensively and lost his confidence.
On the defensive end, he could have restricted Danny Green at the start of the game.
But in the second half of the first quarter, he couldn't even handle Danny Green.
He could neither defend nor attack, which made Paul George have self-doubt about his own strength.
At this time, he no longer looked as high-spirited as he did on the team bus!
Not everyone can handle Danny Green. He played very smart today.
Not only did his offensive and defensive positioning make Paul George feel very uncomfortable.
At the same time, he has already studied his opponent, and he knows where the opponent's weaknesses are.
Unlike the future, Paul George has not yet developed excellent ball-holding breakthrough abilities.
Now George is more like a 3D player, and his scoring method relies more on off-ball cutting and outside shooting.
If you want to say that George doesn't have any ability to break through with the ball now, that's impossible.
But George's current ability is not enough to break through Danny Green's defense.
Although Danny Green is not the league's top defender, he can still be top-notch in the same position.
Moreover, the most important thing is that the Knicks not only have Danny Green at the second position, but also Tony Allen.
He is the defensive backbone above the second and third positions.
Especially Tony Allen is very good at dealing with 3D players like Paul George.
After all, Ray Allen became more like a 3D player later in his career.
Tony Allen and Ray Allen were teammates, and he has great experience in guarding such a 3D player.
Therefore, under the constant care of Danny Green and Tony Allen, Paul George's shooting percentage is extremely poor.
But so far, Paul George and Granger still haven't scored a point.
The entire Pacers team is in a similar dilemma. The Knicks players have advantages in personal skills, game experience, offensive and defensive awareness, and self-confidence.
These all add up to more than just gaining the upper hand.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! It can be said that after completing the substitutions, the Knicks basically suppressed the Pacers and did not give their opponents a chance to show their strengths.
Gallinari, who came off the bench, scored two three-pointers in the second quarter, making the Pacers' situation even worse again.
Under Jeremy Lin's organization, the Knicks all accelerated in the second quarter and did not give the Pacers a chance to breathe.
Gallinari, who missed out on the Sixth Man of the Year award due to injury, performed very well.
In the first half of the second quarter, Gallinari scored an astonishing 10 points by himself. One person alone could defeat the Pacers.
The Pacers still had no ability to fight back in the second quarter, and the score gap continued to widen.
Seeing that the first meeting in the playoffs might face a disastrous defeat, the Indiana people were very unwilling.
This caused some Pacers players who lost a red eye to start to increase their defensive actions.
At 5 minutes and 23 seconds of the second quarter, Lian Dao was violently pulled to the ground by Granger after breaking through, which also caused Granger to receive a technical foul.
Later, when West faced Millsap's entanglement during a layup, he even knocked Millsap to the ground with an elbow.
Even the corners of his eyes were bleeding.
The referee promptly gave West a technical foul.
But this obviously cannot calm the Knicks' anger.
Hibbert shot from mid-range, and Hayes slapped Hibbert in the face.
Hibbert was hit with such force that he lay on the ground with nosebleeds.
If I can't hit your ball, can't I hit your face?
Players from both sides were furious, and when they saw the blood, they all immediately started fighting.
But they were all yelling at each other, and no one dared to take action.
The referee blew the whistle in time, separated the players from both sides, and gave Hayes a technical foul.
The game has begun to get a little out of control. Many Pacers players have lost their mentality when they see the deficit approaching 20 points.
They cannot accept that their performance is so poor.
D'Antoni saw that the opponent was a little annoyed, so he substituted Hassan Whiteside and Jimmy Butler.
Just kidding, there can't be two thugs in the 12-man roster!
Yes, Hassan Whiteside and Butler are the thugs and Lian Dao's bodyguards.
If the opponent commits a flagrant foul and Lian Dao takes action, the gain will outweigh the losses, and the opponent is eager for Lian Dao to get angry and take action.
Taking action is basically a suspension. The Indiana Pacers have already experienced this. After all, they are one of the protagonists in the incident at the Palace of Auburn Hills!
You must know that the Pacers in the 2004-05 season had the potential to be No. 1 in the league, but a conflict completely ruined this team.