Knicks vs. Pacers: Three takeaways from Game 5 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals
The Knicks still are on the ropes in the Eastern Conference finals, but their 111-94 victory over the Pacers in Game 5 on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden breathed new life into the series.
Three takeaways from a somewhat rare home-court victory for the Knicks in these playoffs — and a comfortable wire-to-wire victory at that.
1. Josh Hart is not done yet, thank you
Coach Tom Thibodeau removed Hart from the starting lineup for Game 3, and his recent play seemed to prove the coach right. At times the Knicks’ ball of energy seemed out of it.
In Game 5, he suddenly was back. Not back in the starting lineup, but back with his usual high intensity. He finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in 34:07 and looked like himself again.
“Last game I felt like I was trying and I watched the film and I was really embarrassed about what I was doing, how I looked and the lack of intensity, lack of passion, lack of competitiveness,” he said.
“I was embarrassed, honestly. Not even the [five] turnovers. But giving up back cuts, not communicating. I’m the guy who’s supposed to play with a high competitive nature, a high motor. Those were things I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror, let alone look at these guys.”
So on Thursday, he said, he simply focused on being aggressive on defense and sought to “fly around” in search of rebounds and “get these guys going.”
He did.
2. Thibodeau fielded a football team
During Game 3, TNT’s Kenny Smith quipped that Thibodeau would not use nine players if he were running a baseball team.
In Game 5, Thibodeau continued to go against his long-standing reputation by deploying more players than usual, using 11 overall.
Ten scored. Nine played at least 10 minutes.
In the latter stages of the third quarter, Mikal Bridges was the only starter on the floor, joined by Delon Wright, Deuce McBride, Josh Hart and Precious Achiuwa.
Come the fourth quarter, fans were chanting Landry Shamet’s name in appreciation for his all-around effort.
“I love New York,” Shamet said. “I love these fans. I see how they ride the wave with us, the highs, the lows. So it’s important to me. I just want to give everything I’ve got to them.”
There are varied reasons Thibodeau has expanded his rotation — the opposite of what coaches usually do in the NBA playoffs — but one of them is to combat the deep, fast-paced Pacers.
The unfamiliar faces might be causing some confusion for Indiana.
“They changed their lineup up a little bit,” Andrew Nembhard said. “That might have changed the dynamics of things.”
3. The Pacers claimed not to be shaken, but they were stirred
Coach Rick Carlisle and his players lined up to accept responsibility for being outplayed and outhustled by the Knicks, including Tyrese Haliburton, who went from a historically excellent performance in Game 4 to a dud in Game 5.
“Rough night for me,” he said after finishing with eight points, 2-for-7 shooting and six assists. In Game 4, he had 32 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds.
Said Carlisle, “There are more things I'm going to have to do to help them. And so I’ll take responsibility for that, and we'll see where we can improve.”
The Pacers would be well-advised to wrap this up in Indianapolis in Game 6 to avoid what would be severe pressure in a Game 7.
After Thursday’s loss, Pascal Siakam had a tense back-and-forth with an Indianapolis columnist who wondered how the Pacers admittedly could be outworked by the Knicks in a game of such magnitude.
Siakam, clearly disgusted with the line of questioning, told him that simply is life in the NBA. Sometimes even when you play hard, the other team plays harder.
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
