It's a classic NBA Playoffs rivalry in the next round. The New York Knicks face a very familiar foe from the 1990s the Indiana Pacers. Before members of the faithful outlined this marquee matchup coming back in the postseason, they had to give props to the Philadelphia 76ers. The squad did not give up and showed that they could hang with the best of them despite being bogged down by injury problems all year. Stars and fans alike especially had a lot of love for Tyrese Maxey. Even Ben Stiller and Jerry Ferrara had to show some love.
76ers star gets some love
“Respect to Maxey. He’s a beast. The fastest guy I’ve ever seen in 35 years of watching hoops. Made me nervous to watch a possession where he got a running start,” Jerry Ferrara wrote.
“That was an insane series. Respect Sixers and fans…,” Ben Stiller declared after the Knicks won Game 6 against the Sixers.
Tyrese Maxey was the living and breathing heart of the 76ers in this NBA Playoffs matchup. This is why he was liked by Jerry Ferrara and Ben Stiller a lot. He did not want to rest in this series against the Knicks at all. Coach Nick Nurse allowed him to play an average of 45 minutes while giving him the green light to average 24 field goal attempts per game. This gamble paid off. More than the fact that he did not get injured, he also shot at a highly efficient 50% from all three levels of scoring to get 32.4 points on a nightly basis.
This was not the only thing his offensive arsenal unleashed on the Knicks defense. He also dropped 7.2 assists to keep the 76ers offense going. His clutch heroics were also the reason why each and every game of this NBA Playoffs series was close. This was all rounded out Something might tell Knicks fans that this would not be the last they see of this modern-day rivalry.
Knicks edge out the 76ers in six games
There were a lot of concerns for the New York Knicks entering the NBA Playoffs. The fact that Julius Randle was injured and Coach Tom Thibodeau was playing his rotation for more than 35 minutes each was boggling to fans. Add in the idea of going up against the reigning Most Valuable Player along with a newly-crowned All-Star and they had a lot of reason to be fearful.
Nonetheless, the Knicks pulled it off with their sheer will and late-game execution. Jalen Brunson led the pack by knocking down 41.9% of the field goals that he took to notch 34.4 points throughout the series. He had a lot of help around him when he could not create. Josh Hart, OG Anunoby, and Miles McBride combined for 44.2 points on a nightly basis. Their offensive firepower was not at all hampered by key absences in this game.
The Knicks were also better in the four factors of this NBA Playoffs clash. They had less of a turnover percentage at 9.6% while the 76ers had 10.5 for the whole six games. They also got more second-chance buckets because of crashing the offensive glass. This notched them a 30.5% offensive rebound percentage which dwarfed the 76ers' meager 23.3% for the series.
Follow Us
Subscribe