East Final locks Brunson, Pacers are so lucky to have him

In the 24-25 NBA Eastern Conference Finals, the Pacers fought fiercely with the old opponent of the Knicks. Starting from mid-May, both sides have been back and forth, presenting wonderful games to the fans. The Pacers passed the lane and finally eliminated the Knicks with a total score of 4-2 and successfully entered the finals. After 25 years, the Pacers are standing on the finals again, and Indiana fans can have a happy whole summer.

In this round of the series, Pacers guard Nemhard performed particularly amazingly. As a second round pick, he earned only 2.02 million yuan in annual salary, he firmly sat in the starting position in the team and became an indispensable member of the team. Especially when defending Knicks core Brunson, his performance was outstanding - in the 6 games of the entire series, Brunson, who was closely guarded by Nemhard, shot as low as 38% from the field and only 30% from three-point shooting percentage. Such data comparison is enough to highlight Nemhard's strong deterrence in defense, but 193CM's height has become a defensive iron chain.

Take the Eastern Conference Finals G6 as an example. The game was played at home at the Pacers, and the two sides played hard to solve the first half. After entering the second half, the Pacers suddenly ran away and opened the score, but Brunson's offense was limited, which was inseparable from Nemhard's defense. The whole game contributed 6 steals, accurately destroying the Knicks' offensive rhythm again and again. Brunson was distracted by the guard, so he made many inexplicable mistakes; of course, Nemhard also gave 8 assists, playing the role of the team's second organization point well.

Nemhard was able to lock Brunson in the Eastern Conference Finals, start with his own conditions. Although it was a second round pick, he showed solid skills in college. When he was at the University of Florida, he averaged 32.9 minutes per game, scoring 8.03 points, 2.86 rebounds and 5.39 assists, successfully being selected for the Southeastern League All-Rookie Team. Later, he transferred to Gonzaga University and continued to make progress. He was elected the West Coast League's sixth man of the year and the best player in the championship.

These experiences allowed him to quickly adapt to the intensity of the game after entering the NBA. He responded flexibly and quickly when defending, and was able to keep up with Brunson's breakthrough as soon as possible. It was indeed not easy for Brunson to get rid of him by speed, so it was understandable that he was irritable.

From the perspective of the Pacers, head coach Carlisle trusted him very much, put him in the starting lineup at the beginning of the season, and developed a series of defensive strategies for Brunson. The coaches carefully studied Brunson's offensive habits, so that Nemhard could be targeted when defending and better play his strengths. Moreover, other players on the team, such as Siakam, Halliburton, etc., have fully fired on the offensive end, attracting a lot of defensive attention. This allows Nemhard to not be distracted from other aspects when defending Brunson, and to be able to think about how to limit Brunson and focus more on defense.

Furthermore, Nemhard's own unyielding spirit also played a big role. With a low annual salary, among a group of high-ranking players, he held his energy to prove himself. Every time I step on the field, I fight as the core of the team. This fighting spirit makes him look fearless when facing a star player like Brunson, and he gives his all every second on the court. Seeing that he was not big but had endless energy, Nemhard was seriously underestimated.

Pacers are extremely lucky to get him; their playoffs are better than the regular season, and this is the potential of superstars, and Nemhard has everything. The team management also gave him enough rewards. Last summer, he presented a three-year, $58.65 million contract, with an annual salary of $18.1 million in the new season, which is indeed a high-quality contract.

Now that he has helped the team to reach the finals, Nemhard's exciting career has just begun. Let's wait for him to perform well in high-end games.