8 points, 9 seconds
Fansided

Game 3 Pacers keys: Defending Kyle Korver

By Tony East

CLEVELAND, OH - APRIL 18: George Hill #3 and Kyle Korver #26 of the Cleveland Cavaliers celebrate after scoring during the final second of the second half as Myles Turner #33 of the Indiana Pacers reacts in Game 2 of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena on April 18, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Pacers 100-97. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - APRIL 18: George Hill #3 and Kyle Korver #26 of the Cleveland Cavaliers celebrate after scoring during the final second of the second half as Myles Turner #33 of the Indiana Pacers reacts in Game 2 of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena on April 18, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Pacers 100-97. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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Kyle Korver torched the Indiana Pacers in Game 2. It is imperative to shut him down in Game 3 to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Kyle Korver got loose for four different three-pointers in Game 2. If the Pacers want to win Game 3, that cannot happen.

Let’s do a quick math lesson. Hypothetically, let’s pretend the Pacers give up a wide-open dunk on every possession that Korver makes a three-pointer. If that happens, instead of Korver and the Cavs scoring 12 points, they would score just eight. Thus, the Pacers would have given up four fewer points over the course of the game.

Indiana lost by three.

That demonstrates the impact Korver’s threes have. They are high percentage looks and are worth more points, making it one of the best shots the Cavaliers could possibly get on any given possession. The Pacers need to stop him.

Korver got loose in game two on some very simple actions. The first one, pretty early in the game, was a simple pick and pop. I tweeted about it:

Like the tweet says, I know it is challenging at the moment to think about leaving LeBron James. But LeBron made 36.7 percent of his threes this season. Korver made 43.6 percent. At that moment, you would rather have a LeBron James wide-open three attempted than a Korver wide-open three. The Pacers need to communicate and switch on that screen to make sure Korver doesn’t get a look.

Speaking of communicating, check out this blunder in transition:

Darren Collison covers Korver for a second, but he lays off to stop the ball. In theory, he should have communicated with another player and had someone else stop the ball. In actuality, he should do anything except what he did, which was leaving Kyle Korver open (side note, credit Bojan for battling hard in the post with LeBron).

Kyle Korver’s second three could have been stopped too. How? By, you guessed it, communicating:

Once that pin-down screen happens in the corner, Lance Stephenson and Cory Joseph need to talk and switch the screen so Korver doesn’t get free. Remeber, literally anything is statistically better than letting Kyle Korver shoot a three.

Korver’s last three was off of a scramble from a Cavs offensive rebound, and it was really nobody’s fault:

Want to stop that one? Don’t let Cleveland get the offensive rebound.

Next: Thaddeus Young confident in himself and the Pacers

There are many things the Pacers can improve upon to increase their chances of winning game three. But finding a way to contain Korver should be high up on the priority list. Let’s hope McMillan has some tricks up his sleeves.

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