Pacers Face Crucial Battle That Could Decide Thunder Matchup

The Indiana Pacers have struggled to keep their rhythm on the offensive side of the court. Even in Game 1, when they came back to win, they didn't feel comfortable offensively until the fourth quarter.

Having been the most dangerous offense throughout the playoffs, the Pacers rely on getting out in transition and getting easy buckets to win games. They haven't been able to do that against the Thunder.

Getting out in transition against Oklahoma City is not going to happen very often, so they have to find another part of their offense to be better.

The Indiana Pacers have to win the three-point battle against the Thunder to win the title

Without the luxury of getting those easy buckets off turnovers, the Pacers have to win the three-point battle against the Thunder. That has to be a large part of their offense.

In general, the Pacers are usually a very good three-point shooting team. They use that as a weapon to equalize things when another team is playing good defense.

In Game 1, Indiana shot 46 percent from beyond the arc. They made seven more threes than Oklahoma City, giving them 21 extra points.

Unfortunately, they weren't able to get the same kind of production in Game 2. Indiana shot just 35 percent from deep and made the exact same number of threes as OKC.

The Pacers have to make more threes than the Thunder to stand a chance in this series. They have some of the best three-point shooters in the postseason on their roster.

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Of players that have attempted more than two threes per game in the postseason, the Pacers have four of the top 17 three-point shooters in the entire playoffs.

Aaron Nesmith is shooting a blistering 49.5 percent from deep on 5.6 attempts per game. He has been excellent. The Pacers need Myles Turner to hit his open threes, as well.

Turner is shooting about 39 percent from deep this postseason, but he is just 3-10 from deep in the first two games. He has to make his pick-and-pop threes.

Tyrese Haliburton must be better, too. He hasn't shot it well from deep throughout the entire playoffs, That must change if the Pacers are going to win a title.

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