Indiana Pacers head coach Nate McMillan says the team will trap Boston Celtics star point guard Kyrie Irving more in Game 3 to get the ball out of his hands.
Irving was a magician in Game 2. The All-Star guard put up 37 points and willed the Celtics to a comeback win and get a 2-0 series lead.
Essentially, McMillan wants the Pacers to hound Irving and force other players on the Celtics to beat them.
McMillan says Pacers will look for more opportunities to trap Kyrie and get the ball out of his hands.
— Adam Himmelsbach (@AdamHimmelsbach) April 19, 2019
The Pacers will be playing like a desperate team in Game 3. No team in NBA history has come back from a 0-3 deficit, so Indiana knows they can't lose Game 3 at home.
Irving is averaging 28.5 points through the first two games and shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 53.3 percent from beyond the arc. Small forward Jayson Tatum is putting up 20.5. After Irving and Tatum, the next leading scorer for the Celtics is Gordon Hayward, who is averaging 11.5.
The Pacers could have won Game 2 if Irving didn't go into Superman mode. Indiana just had no answer for Uncle Drew.
If the Pacers trap Irving the right way in Game 3 just like McMillan plans, they should be able to force turnovers and get out in transition. Expect Wesley Matthews and Darren Collison to get physical with Irving moving forward.
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