A lollipop appeared halfway, the Pacers lineup weakness was finally found, and the Eastern Conference Finals have just begun

No one expected that 20% of the Pacers in New York would be able to capsize at their home court. It seems like no one can meet Towns in the last quarter, scoring 20 points and 8 rebounds to help the Knicks secure the victory. The Pacers were caught off guard by the hardened Towns, and the explosion at this point also changed the trend of the series.

Before Towns broke out, the Knicks' main attack point was Brunson. In the three games of the Eastern Conference Finals, Brunson scored a total of 102 points, averaging 34 points per game, which beat the Pacers' entire back line. However, personal heroism cannot save the Knicks. Brunson scored high scores in the first two games, based on averaging 26 shots per game. While the Pacers intentionally gave Brunson a personal single to consume his energy, they also made him fall into the singles circle and lose contact with his teammates.

Pacers have a large number of high-quality defenders in the second and third positions, and they are not afraid of Brunson's personal attack. As long as the defensive resources are matched, Brunson can be continuously consumed to achieve the goal of reducing the Knicks' offensive efficiency. The series is moving in the direction expected by the Pacers, with Brunson's shooting percentage dropping from 60% to 30%. In G3, his personal singles not only failed to help the team break the deadlock, but became a burden.

Who ever thought that Towns broke out halfway during the harvest moment, which not only disrupted the Pacers' game plan, but also accidentally hit the Pacers' weakness. Towns G3 didn't score much and only had 24 points, and his shooting percentage was only 47.1%. But there are two data worth noting.

One is positive and negative, and the +6 points when Towns is on the court is the highest among the five starting players, which means that the Knicks can beat the Pacers 6 points when Towns is on the court. Brunson's data is -6 points, indicating that Brunson's presence is negative. The more Towns beats, the better the effect.

followed by Turner's fouls. Turner averaged 2 fouls per game in the first two games. He received almost no impact or interference on the defensive end, but the number of fouls in G3 soared to five. Because he is Towns' main opponent, Turner's increase in fouls has a lot to do with Towns' continuous attacks on him.

Judging from the matchup between Turner and Towns, although Turner has the advantage of protecting the frame. But Towns has better footsteps and higher heights, so Turner is actually at a disadvantage in defending Towns alone. In particular, Towns is very good at dribbling outside the three-point line, and his small forward play also makes Turner very uncomfortable. Towns held the ball and turned 1st tactical style, and the reason why Thibodeau did not notice Carlisle did not notice the first two games. Because the Knicks' ball rights are all in Brunson's hands. If Towns is used as a fixed-point turret and a blue-collar insider, he will naturally not be able to play his advantage in holding the ball, and he will not be able to hit the Pacers' insider.

But because Brunson was in foul trouble, Thibodeau had to straighten Towns as the main attacker. So the advantages of this group of Knicks were activated, and the Pacers' weaknesses were completely exposed.

G4 Thibodeau will definitely use the G3 style to let Towns continue to focus on Turner. The Pacers must find a way to match the strength of the Knicks and reduce Towns' offensive efficiency. If you cannot rely on single defense to lock Towns' ball offense, can you refer to the Lakers' defense of Jokic and use the front line to defend Towns, and then Turner waits for an opportunity to block Towns' shot.

Downs' back-to-body singles skills are not good enough, which can be seen from his misplaced singles, but choosing to turn the frame halfway instead of hard chiseling on his back. Carlisle can try to use a solid front line in the lower set to play against Towns and force him to use a back-play that he is not good at, so that he can liberate Turner and let him protect the frame better. This move has certain risks. After all, it is to use the forward line to prevent Towns. If Towns is in full swing in the G4, the Pacers are very likely to be tied, but the essence of basketball tactics is to bet, so the Pacers have to bet this game no matter what. Perhaps the real contest in the Eastern Conference Final has only begun now.