On Sunday, the Indiana Pacers will take on the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinals matchup. The Cavs have been the best team in the East all season long, and even though the Pacers won three of their four regular-season matchups, that record is deceiving.
Two of those games came in the final week of the season, when both teams were resting most of, if not all, of their stars.
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Against Cleveland, the Pacers will need to stars and starters to bring their A-game, but there is faith they can elevate their level of play in one of the most important games of their careers.
Rick Carlisle outlined his faith in two players in particular.
“A lot of it is how they’re built internally, what their mindset is, how they view the game, how they drive themselves to prepare for those kinds of moments,” said Carlisle of his stars. “And certainly Tyrese and Pascal have had a lot of those moments in the playoffs the last two years. And so, you know, I was fortunate to play with Larry Bird and McHale and Parrish and Dennis Johnson and Bill Walton and those guys. I had the privilege of coaching Reggie Miller and Luka Doncic.”
Carlisle played for the Boston Celtics for three seasons, winning a title alongside Bird and the rest of the Hall-of-Fame cast. Those Celtics were able to kick themselves into a higher gear in the playoffs, and the Pacers are being held to the same expectation.
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“Some of it’s the wiring, certainly some of it’s the talent level and their ability to raise their game,” he continued. “But it’s the thing that defines this time of year.”
Tipoff is at 6:00 PM EST and the game will be broadcast on TNT.
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