1-3 in the Eastern Conference Finals, 44 years without reversal, New York is eager to become a miracle creator

The Knicks have been working on miracles throughout the playoffs. He smoothed the 20-point gap many times, counterattacked from the dilemma of 14 points behind again and again, and also hit key goals in various away games. However, if they want to continue their dream of winning the championship, they need to complete their greatest reversal so far. After G4 lost to the Pacers 121-130, the Knicks faced a 1-3 desperate situation in the Eastern Conference Finals. Since 1981, no team has been able to reverse the situation when they fell 1-3 in the Eastern Conference Finals.

"Over our entire playoff journey, we always put ourselves behind and try to climb out of the pit. Usually when we are in a stalemate in the fourth quarter, we are full of confidence in ourselves, which shows our resilience," said Towns. "I tell you many times that when you always put yourself in this situation, you will pay the price one day, and tonight is such a night. You think we can still find that 'winning weapon' after entering the fourth quarter, but we just don't have that kind of magic in G4." Although the Pacers are excellent, they are not invincible. They made 17 mistakes in the G4 game, giving the Pacers 20 points, many of which were low-level mistakes. Josh Hart made five mistakes by himself, and four of the five starters made at least two mistakes. In addition to the mistakes, the lineup matching problem also bothers them.

In the last game, the starting lineup consisted of Bronson, Bridges, Anunobi, Towns and Robinson, had a net win of -32.9 in 10 minutes. Ironically, the only core lineup that performed well was the previous starting group (Bronson, Bridges, Anunobi, Hart, Towns), who scored a 100-round net score of +29.8 in 9 minutes. The Knicks' best-performing lineup that night included Wright and Shamet (similar to the third game), and the team's net score of 100 rounds in 7 minutes was as high as 66.7.

The results of Robinson joining the starting lineup in the past two games were not ideal. The Knicks' best performance moments are often to let defensive players Wright and Shamet play around the starter, forming an effective defense against the Pacers' second team when Halliburton is out. Thibodeau tried to fill one vulnerability, but naturally another vulnerability appeared. There is no doubt that the Knicks' season has been on the verge of death. But if there is any team that can accomplish seemingly impossible tasks, it is this team that has created miracles in the battle of back and forth. "At the moment, nothing else matters," Bronson said, "you have to give it all, it's that simple."