Game 1 Recap: Missed opportunity, or a sign the Pacers can win?
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
It didn’t take long for some drama and controversy to enter the newest chapter of the Pacers/Knicks story. A wildly entertaining Game One at Madison Square Garden ended with some head-scratching calls, and an opportunity lost for the Pacers.
Here’s my question: Will Game One prove to be the Pacers’ downfall in the series? Or… did Game One prove the Knicks need a lot to go their way to beat this team?
Part of me thinks Indy just blew their chance when they had it in the palm of their hands. A bigger part of me thinks the Pacers can still win this series.
Every game of a playoff series is a world of its own. That’s why Game One against Milwaukee didn’t translate to Game Two, and also why Game Five’s loss didn’t carry over to Game Six. You just don’t know what you’re going to get from game to game. Wednesday night’s Game Two in New York could be drastically different, and it still may only give us a small glimpse of the overall series. The eye test on Monday told me the Pacers can not only hang with New York, but they might even be the better team. They clearly need more from Tyrese Haliburton, and they have a huge challenge trying to contain Jalen Brunson. But IF Monday’s game is any indication, I have no reason to believe the Pacers don’t have a legitimate chance here.
Head Coach Rick Carlisle gave a great perspective after the crushing Game One loss- “I don’t want to talk about the officiating. We’re not expecting to get calls in here. It would be nice if they laid off that one, but they didn’t. That’s just the way it goes. We challenged it. They reviewed it. They’ve got a bunch of people in New Jersey that agreed with them, so that’s just the way it goes.”
Carlisle then joined “The Wake Up Call” on Tuesday morning and said there’s no point in creating a distraction within their team, and there are things the Pacers could have done to avoid being in that situation in the first place.
Ideally, the Pacers go into Game 2 with that perspective, while still playing with a chip on their shoulder. It’s always been “Pacers vs. the world,” and there’s no exception here. They’ve still got an opportunity to steal a game at the Garden before heading home, and they haven’t lost a game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse since March 18th. Even if the Pacers go down 2-0 in the series, I won’t be surprised if they win both at home to tie things up.
This team has responded all season. The Pacers are 25-12 this year in games following a loss. Opportunity is still knocking. The Pacers will try to kick the door down (and not with their hands).
