Pacers Will Have Major Advantage Against Knicks in Series

The Indiana Pacers have surprised the NBA world by reaching the Eastern Conference Finals. To get there, they toppled some eastern giants in the Giannis Antetokounmpo Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, and the 64-win Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round.

Heading into their third playoff matchup with the New York Knicks, the Pacers seem to have a significant advantage and are expected to win the series. It should be a close series between the fourth and third seeds, but the Pacers are understandably the favorites when breaking down both teams.

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Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star did just that, breaking down the two teams and comparing them based on offense, defense, depth, and coaching.

Starting with offense, the Pacers have the advantage given their breakneck pace and multiple scoring options. The Knicks have star point guard Jalen Brunson and some other solid secondary scorers in Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges, but they don't have the firepower that the Pacers have.

The Pacers have Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam as primary scorers, and also have Andrew Nembhard, Myles Turner, Aaron Nesmith, T.J. McConnell, and Bennedict Mathurin as secondary options who can can catch-and-shoot or create their own shots to a degree.

Moving on to defense, the Knicks have the advantage, mainly through their top defensive wings. Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, and OG Anunoby all have great strength and length to swith on all five positions and give offenses problems.

The Pacers have better rim protection with Myles Turner, but the Knicks have more elite individual defenders who overall boost their defense. It also helps that Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau is known for being an elite defensive head coach.

Moving on to depth, the Pacers have a significant advantage in that department. Rick Carlisle has gone to big rotations during this playoff partly due to the depth advantage the Pacers have had over all of their opponents.

Mathurin, McConnell, former Knick Obi Toppin, Jarace Walker, and Ben Sheppard are all playoff-caliber role players. The Knicks have solid options off the bench with Mitchell Robinson, and Miles McBride, but in general they almost exclusively rely on their starters.

The difference in depth could turn out to be a huge advantage for the Pacers in this series.

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Finally, the coaching matchup is an interesting one. Both teams have veteran coaches with plenty of playoff experience. Thibodeau is known as a great defensive coach, while Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle has elite offensive chops.

However, with Carlisle's championship on his resume and more new-school mindset, he has the slight advantage over Thibodeau in this series. That means that when breaking down this series into four distinct categories, the Pacers have an advantage in three, giving them a significant chance to win the series.

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For more news and notes on the Indiana Pacers, visit Indiana Pacers on SI.