In Eastern Conference Finals Game 3, the Pacers fans at Conseco Fieldhouse grew increasingly disheartened.

During halftime, even the fans holding ‘Miller Time’ whiteboards lost their enthusiasm, and those who had stood up to watch the game all sat back down.

Rik Smits became the Pacers’ key player, performing exceptionally well in the first half, making 10 of 15 shots and scoring a team-high 21 points.

The Dutch center not only used his height advantage to attack the basket but also consistently made mid-range and long-range jump shots.

This situation was certainly related to the New York Knicks’ defensive strategy, but it was more due to Rik Smits’ excellent form, as he capitalized on these open opportunities.

In contrast, Jalen Rose made 1 of 7 shots, scoring a mere 4 points, and Reggie Miller made 2 of 4 shots, getting 5 points.

54:43, at the end of the first half, the New York Knicks still led by 11 points.

There wasn’t much to comment on in the game.

Clay Lee, Allan Houston, and Ron Artest took turns relentlessly chasing and defending, constantly putting physical pressure on Reggie Miller.

They blocked three-pointers, and on step-through drives, they would pull and bump him, causing Reggie Miller to largely get lost in the physical confrontations.

The whistles in Game 2 were quite tight, but in Game 3 tonight, the referees’ officiating was very lenient.

What frustrated Pacers fans the most was that Reggie Miller found it difficult to shake off defenders with his movement as he had in the past.

Even if the New York Knicks’ perimeter Defense was out of position, they could still recover with their excellent athleticism to chase down, and facing the impact of the younger players, Reggie Miller never found his touch.

Ever since Jalen Rose took on a large number of defensive assignments, his shooting percentage began to decline, and he also failed to alleviate his elder brother’s worries on the defensive end.

The point difference was still within reach, but the noise in the stadium grew quieter and quieter.

After the second half began, Reggie Miller made two forced three-pointers from the left and right wings, but the New York Knicks quickly responded.

At the NBC commentary desk, Doug Collins hadn’t expected Reggie Miller to play so poorly in the first half.

Scoring efficiently in the 3rd quarter seemed too late:

“To turn the game around, the Pacers must limit the opponent’s offense on the defensive end.”

“OH! And they also need to reduce these unforced turnovers!”

Jalen Rose drove hard into the paint, attacked the basket, collided with Larry Johnson in the restricted area, and ultimately lost the ball, resulting in a turnover.

Kurt Thomas immediately secured the ball, firmly controlling possession.

The immediate counter-steal attempt failed, and the Pacers players could only quickly retreat on Defense.

68:56, the Pacers’ scoring had stopped for two minutes, with 4 minutes and 25 seconds remaining in the 3rd quarter, and the point difference had still not been narrowed.

While the shooting percentage declined, the New York Knicks performed better in game details.

Up to this point in the 3rd quarter, the entire team had not committed a single turnover.

When Clay Lee received the ball, boos erupted in the Conseco Fieldhouse again.

He didn’t push the ball quickly but waited for his teammates to get into position before bringing the ball over half-court with less than 8 seconds remaining.

Larry Johnson immediately came up to set a screen, hanging on the right wing for a moment, and taking advantage of Mark Jackson’s switch, he immediately began to post up for the ball.

The two pulled and tugged, reaching the elbow area, where Mark Jackson, relying on his strength, successfully defended with a semi-fronting position, not allowing Larry Johnson to receive the ball easily.

Jalen Rose also continuously interfered from beyond the three-point line, attempting to disrupt Clay Lee’s offensive rhythm.

This seemingly excellent Defense immediately made the fans cheer loudly:

“Defense!”

Larry Johnson, unable to successfully post up, quickly moved to the right baseline corner, while Jalen Rose set up his forearm, tightly sticking to Lee beyond the three-point line.

Holding the ball in his left hand, Lee observed the Pacers’ Defense. Taking advantage of Larry Johnson creating space, he immediately leaned in and accelerated.

Jalen Rose sensed Lee’s movement with his arm and quickly slid backward to the right.

Unable to shake off the Defense immediately, Lee was almost covered by his opponent.

Forcing his way to the free-throw line, Jalen Rose was almost thrown off balance by Lee’s sudden stop and explosive dribble.

After the sudden stop, Lee didn’t rush to drive but suddenly looked up at the basket.

As Jalen Rose again came forward to stick to him, Lee immediately pivoted on his right foot and quickly spun around.

“Oh!”

The elegant move made many people in the stadium instinctively exclaim.

The perfectly timed move allowed Clay Lee to instantly shake off the Defense with his quick spin.

Before Jalen Rose could jump to block, Lee had already gathered the ball and smoothly released a fadeaway jump shot!

“Swish!” The two-point shot went in steadily.

Seeing Clay Lee’s smiling face, Jalen Rose suddenly felt that his Defense seemed to have been figured out, completely lacking the effectiveness of the previous game.

At the commentary desk, Bob Costas found it difficult to evaluate the New York Knicks’ current style of play.

With a large number of mismatch isolations, as long as the primary attacker could put the ball into the basket, the Pacers’ Defense would be futile:

“Lee has completely adapted to Jalen’s Defense. To catch up, the Pacers must speed up their offensive pace a bit more.”

“Although there’s still a quarter left in the game, given the current situation, unless the New York Knicks’ offense goes cold themselves, it will be very difficult to overcome a double-digit deficit.”

Bob Costas no longer just spoke positively.

The Pacers were about to break.

Larry Johnson had been very active on the court during this period, mainly because he was indeed good at playing mismatches.

As long as he could receive the ball in the low post, his shooting percentage was extremely high.

The good offensive feedback also made “Grandmama” more active on the defensive end.

Rik Smits backed down to the basket from the left low post for a strong attack, but his floater missed.

Dale Davis again crashed the offensive glass and tried to put up a shot in the crowd, but Larry Johnson, who had collapsed into the paint, stripped the ball away.

Holding the ball and grinning, Larry Johnson, who had shaved his beard and cut his hair, felt great.

“Boo!”

After two consecutive turnovers, Larry Bird on the sidelines shook his head slightly, crossing his arms without saying a word.

Still not pushing the ball quickly, Clay Lee changed direction this time, coming to the left wing, and Allan Houston immediately drove hard towards the block area.

Reggie Miller constantly pulled from behind, and although he pushed Allan Houston out a step, Lee still made an accurate pass.

A playing style characteristic of the era, where the shooting guard or small forward would post up in the two block areas, and everyone else would spread out.

Throughout the entire 3rd quarter, the New York Knicks continuously executed this offensive method, grinding their opponent into submission.

After putting the ball down with his right hand, Allan Houston continuously posted up.

After driving two steps towards the basket, he immediately spun quickly towards the baseline, making a fadeaway jump shot over the block!

The Pacers immediately called a timeout.

Larry Bird’s expression was serious, the game was worse than he had anticipated.

72:56, the lead extended to 16 pointsm

On the New York Knicks bench, everyone smiled, stood up, and fist-bumped those coming off the court.

Jeff Van Gundy smiled, also clapping continuously. The game was basically secured!

The director frequently focused the camera on Reggie Miller.

The Pacers were in dire straits, but many fans still held out hope, expecting the team’s superstar to save the game.

In the final minutes of the 3rd quarter, Reggie Miller made two long two-point shots from the right baseline after two consecutive pump fakes.

Allan Houston, however, showed no reaction.

He came back to hold the ball in the block area, drove hard, and even drew a shooting foul on Reggie Miller.

When the substitute guard Best’s cross-court pass from the top of the arc was stolen by Lee for a fast break dunk, Conseco Fieldhouse fell completely silent.

At this moment, Best was still complaining to the referee that Lee had knocked him down, but Larry Bird, enraged on the sidelines, directly yelled:

“MOTHERFUCK! Go get the ball!”

Clay Lee, having completed the dunk, was posing under the rim, waiting for the Pacers to inbound the ball before continuing to lead the Defense.

Hearing Larry Bird’s roar, Lee smiled and joked with referee Dan Crawford:

“He should get a T, the NBA has strict rules this season!”

Dan Crawford merely tilted his head, seemingly indicating that this was a privilege for a star coach.

Soon, boos erupted in the Conseco Fieldhouse again, and the Pacers’ offense became even more constipated.

At the end of the 3rd quarter, it seemed that only the New York Knicks’ atmosphere group was cheering loudly.

78:65, Reggie Miller, who scored 12 points on 4 of 6 shooting in the quarter, did not help his team turn the game around.

Just as Ben Wallace still couldn’t defend Rik Smits, the Pacers’ perimeter Defense also couldn’t stop the New York Knicks’ offense.

After the 4th quarter began, Jalen Rose suddenly erupted again, but scoring at this point couldn’t provide much help to the team.

Jalen Rose’s individual scoring performance initially gave the Pacers fans in the stadium some hope.

But as the New York Knicks’ offense diversified with multiple players scoring, the point difference fluctuated around 10 points, and as game time elapsed, everyone realized the series was about to end.

Jeff Van Gundy also stuck with his starters as the game neared its conclusion, though Ewing still didn’t get a chance to play.

Gorilla could only maintain a smile and cheer on the others.

The closer the game got to ending, the quieter the stadium became.

There would be no Miller Time.

With 20 seconds left in the game, Jalen Rose made a driving layup, and on the next possession, Clay Lee stepped to the free-throw line.

In the final moments, substitute Crosier missed a three-pointer, and the game officially ended.

102:93, the New York Knicks successfully secured match point, and the series was essentially decided.

Jalen Rose, who scored 22 points in the fourth quarter on 7 of 7 shooting and 7 of 9 from the free-throw line, covered his face with his hands and lay directly on the floor upon hearing the final buzzer.

Reggie Miller pursed his lips and said nothing, watching the scoreboard for a while with his hands on his hips.

After pulling Jalen Rose up, the two walked quickly with their heads down towards the player tunnel.

Rik Smits also looked very dejected.

The Dutch big man scratched his head in frustration, turning his golden hair into a bird’s nest, and grumbled as he followed his teammates back to the locker room.

In 40 minutes, Rik Smits was 12 for 20, with 25 points, 5 rebounds, 1 block, and 1 turnover, once again dominating Ben Wallace.

Although Ben was thoroughly outplayed, he was indeed unable to defend against such a tall, high-post player.

However, winning made him happy, and Ben Wallace didn’t dwell on it after the game, celebrating and laughing with the New York Knicks.

“Boo!”

The Conseco Fieldhouse was still filled with boos, but Clay Lee didn’t care about the atmosphere.

He smiled and hugged a completely relaxed Jeff Van Gundy:

“Relax, Coach! This slow-paced game can’t defeat us!”

Jeff Van Gundy patted Lee’s shoulder firmly and suddenly sighed:

“Even now, I still feel a sense of unreality, Lee. I’m proud of you!”

The two commentators watched Lee slowly walk towards the player tunnel, arm-in-arm with Jeff Van Gundy, and could only praise them:

“The New York Knicks are getting better and better, and under Lee’s leadership, Larry Johnson’s performance is improving.”

“Together, they scored 55 points. I think New York fans are very happy to see this.”

As Bob Costas finished speaking, Doug Collins added two more comments:

“The Pacers only took 70 shots in one game, trying to suppress the New York Knicks with their height.”

“But don’t forget that Lee is a master of tempo, quietly allowing the New York Knicks to take 82 shots, with only 10 turnovers for the entire team.”

“12 fewer shots, 5 more turnovers. I don’t want to comment on Head Coach Larry Bird’s game strategy, but it’s clear they weren’t fully prepared.”

In 40 minutes, Clay Lee was 10 for 19 from the field, 2 for 5 from beyond the arc, and 8 for 8 from the free throw line, with 30 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and 2 turnovers.

Clay Lee’s assists weren’t numerous, but with a combination of fast and slow play, and confident mismatch isolations, he transformed the game into a battle of possessions and shooting percentages.

Basic statistics couldn’t fully capture Lee’s influence, and Bob Costas finally sighed:

“This is an MVP! Among active players, Lee’s influence on offense seems to have entered another dimension.”

“…”

Competitive sports are cruel.

Celebrating losers is always a minority, and washed-up stars in the NBA receive no attention and no criticism.

No one blamed Reggie Miller for the loss, even though he only took 12 shots in that game, and no one cared about those details afterward.

The entire press conference was hastily concluded by the media reporters below the stage.

The Pacers? Sorry, everyone was already starting to hype up the New York Knicks’ Finals appearance!

Ewing also felt completely outdated, as he only played 19 minutes in tonight’s game.

After the game, the New York Media seemed to have forgotten him.

Everyone was praising Clay Lee’s control of the game, Larry Johnson’s mismatch isolations, and Allan Houston’s increasingly diverse offensive repertoire.

Oakley didn’t care about these things.

The old man only played 22 minutes, but he was happy on the bench, occasionally cursing at opponents, thoroughly enjoying the process of the game.

After returning to the hotel by bus, Jeff Van Gundy first clapped his hands and gave a few instructions, then Lee also added with a serious expression:

“There’s no need to go back to New York for the Eastern Conference Finals. Tomorrow night, we will lift the Conference Championship trophy here.”

“I know every game isn’t easy, but one more fight, and we’ll be in the Finals for three consecutive years.”

“Now, the championship is beckoning us!”

The atmosphere crew immediately cheered in response.

This season was about to end, and although the regular season record was not ideal, the playoffs were easier than everyone expected.

Although it was just a Conference Championship, for the New York Knicks, it was a landmark achievement.

On the 29th, James Dolan flew to Polis with the management and team staff.

The New York Knicks had the 28th pick in the first round this season.

Although it was likely another atmosphere crew member, General Manager Grunfeld was already busy with the draft.

What gave him a headache was that the big boss always had some whimsical ideas.

Fortunately, this year was only for selecting the atmosphere crew, so Grunfeld regarded this year as a year of mutual adjustment between the two parties.

The Eastern Conference Finals Game 4 that night did not disappoint the New York Knicks’ management.

After the first quarter, James Dolan, who was watching the game from a suite, celebrated with a fist pump.

33:19.

Both teams played the entire first quarter, and the New York Knicks once again had multiple players scoring.

Clay Lee was 3 for 3, 1 for 1 from beyond the arc, with 7 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists.

Larry Johnson continued his previous high-level performance, going 4 for 6, 1 for 1 from beyond the arc, and scoring 9 points!

All 5 starters scored, but Ewing and Oakley still played less than 6 minutes.

With a deficit in the first quarter, Doug Collins on the commentary desk no longer commented on the Pacers’ performance:

“Although everyone thinks the New York Knicks have declined on Defense, some shortcomings can be avoided in the playoffs.”

“A best-of-seven series tests a player’s on-court performance and a Head Coach’s in-game reactions more.”

“From this perspective, the New York Knicks have a great advantage. Having reached the Finals for two consecutive seasons, they have richer game experience.”

Bob Costas also chimed in on the topic:

“Head Coach Van Gundy didn’t use Ewing much in the Eastern Conference Finals, clearly preparing for the subsequent games.”

“…”

In the subsequent game, the Pacers began to constantly dig themselves out of the hole.

Reggie Miller, who was 4 for 10 in the first quarter, failed to maintain his high-level performance in the second quarter.

57:40.

At halftime, the New York Knicks were already leading by 17 points.

Kukoc and Ron Artest, who came off the bench, were still the same, clanking three-pointers.

But Kurt Thomas stepped up, going 4 for 7, 4 for 4 from the free throw line, and scoring 12 points!

The Pacers fans in the Conseco Fieldhouse realized the game was largely decided and fell completely silent, sitting quietly in their seats, waiting for the game to end.

In the second half, Jalen Rose erupted again, efficiently helping the Pacers score, but the hole they dug was too deep, and they couldn’t climb out.

With 1 minute and 26 seconds left in the game, Head Coach Larry Bird finally called a timeout and put in the atmosphere crew.

Reggie Miller, sitting on the bench with a towel draped over him, stared blankly as the game clock ran out.

At the end of his career, his championship dream was shattered once again.

Reggie Miller never expected the Pacers to be swept out of the playoffs.

The final buzzer sounded, 107:89.

In a battle for honor, the Pacers were completely defeated again.

Clay Lee had already changed into his practice uniform in the latter half of the fourth quarter.

When the game ended, he stood up and clapped with a smile.

Ron Artest was the most excited.

Although his scoring contribution in this year’s playoffs wasn’t much, as a Rookie, being able to enter the regular rotation and play in important games was already a great success.

“Championship! I’m going to the Finals!”

Ron Artest, running back to the bench, shouted happily.

However, the veterans had already experienced these things and didn’t show much excitement, just smiling and hugging each other.

Reggie Miller shook hands with the New York Knicks players and quickly left.

He didn’t like New York, and he didn’t like the New York Knicks.

Reaching the Finals again, Jeff Van Gundy felt relieved.

He simply hugged Larry Bird and then stood aside, watching his players celebrate.

Pacers fans who didn’t want to see the New York Knicks lift the trophy had already started to leave.

The awards ceremony was very simple.

The New York Knicks players only needed to put on their Conference Championship hats to await the trophy presentation.

Even more excited than the players was James Dolan.

Last year, he couldn’t represent the team, but now he was the true decision-maker of the team.

Bob Costas acted as the temporary host.

The New York Knicks players cheered loudly again when they saw the golden trophy in the center of the court.

Noticing everyone gathered in a circle, Bob Costas raised the microphone and said with a smile:

“Congratulations to the New York Knicks for winning the 1999-2000 Eastern Conference Championship!”

“Wow!”

“Winning the Conference Championship for three consecutive years, that’s definitely an amazing achievement!”

“In your first year taking over the team, the New York Knicks won the championship again. What does this mean to you?”

Although there were still scattered boos, James Dolan, excited after lifting the trophy, didn’t care at all.

He took the microphone and said loudly:

“The championship means everything to me. I love the New York Knicks, and I want to build it into the best basketball team on Earth…”

Watching the big boss pour out motivational speeches, Clay Lee in the back just chuckled and joined in the applause.

Everyone gestured for him to lift the trophy first, so Lee pushed Ewing and Oakley forward.

The two veterans were naturally very happy at this moment.

After Gorilla lifted the trophy, everyone cheered again.

Feeling that James Dolan was preparing for a long speech, Clay Lee simply called out his talent panel and, with a thought, learned of his gains:

[Grant Hill’s Excellent Jumping Ability]

Allan Houston noticed Clay Lee suddenly smiling very happily and laughed, saying:

“Lee, we still need 4 more wins!”

“.”

…

By the way, don’t forget to throw power stones and leave a review to motivate me 🙂

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep