The Indiana Pacers got crushed by the Knicks in Game 5. Besides a tiny run by the Pacers to start the third quarter, the second half of this game was never close. It was a game full of duds. It was an extremely disappointing effort considering how well the Pacers played in Game 4.
Myles Turner was the guy who tried to give Indiana some hope. He hit three three-pointers in a row to cut the deficit to seven points in the third quarter. After that, the Pacers fell apart and couldn't sustain their momentum. Turner tried to give his guys something to build on late in the game though.
After setting a screen on Donte DiVincenzo, DiVincenzo went after Turner. Turner went right back at him and did not back down. He was clearly trying to fire up his young guys to show some better effort in Game 6 on Friday to keep their season alive. As the veteran of the team, it was an interesting move.
Donte DiVincenzo had words about the Pacers after the game. He had this to say on Myles Turner specifically.
""They're trying to be tough guys. And that's not their identity. ...Nobody is going to fight in the NBA. Take the foul and keep it moving. You're not a tough guy.""Donte DiVincenzo
First of all, DiVincenzo is the guy who gave the hard foul. It was uncalled for at that point in the game. He's the one who's trying to be the tough guy. He started backing away from Turner as soon as the center looked at him. DiVincenzo was the one being the fake tough guy.
Regardless, the Pacers do need to be tougher. They got absolutely murdered on the boards and it gave the Knicks 29 more shots than Indiana. That can't happen in Game 6 if the Pacers want their season to stay alive. Indiana's rebounding struggles were tough to watch.
Turner needs to be chief among the guys who fixes his rebounding. Isaiah Hartenstein absolutely ate him up on the boards. He had double-digit offensive rebounds. That's an indictment on Turner's toughness more than anything DiVincenzo said.