This year’s Eastern Conference Finals in the NBA is set to reignite one of the league’s greatest rivalries — the New York Knicks vs. the Indiana Pacers. Both teams are on fire. The Pacers just knocked out the top-seeded Cavaliers, while the Knicks derailed the Celtics’ title defense in six games. But who is the favorite to triumph in the East and head to the Finals? Stephen A. Smith’s pick is clear.
Advertisement
Smith and Monica McNutt recently broke down the upcoming series on ESPN. Putting his Knicks fandom aside, Smith asked McNutt for her thoughts on the matchup, and her prediction was one that would surely excite the New York faithful, SAS included.
“I’ve got the Knicks coming out of this series in seven games,” she stated. However, McNutt also offered some advice on what the Jalen Brunson-led squad needs to do to avoid getting blown out like the Cavaliers.
“They’ve got to stay healthy,” she warned—something that might seem obvious but was a major issue for both the Cavs and even the Celtics against New York. On top of that, she urged the Knicks to set the tempo early and not let the Pacers dictate the game from the start, which was another area where Cleveland struggled.
“They’ve got to control the pace. If they find themselves chasing Indiana, I don’t like it,” she added.
The Pacers are no pushovers, and McNutt knows it. “I think Indiana is really, really good. I take nothing away from their group,” she said, before highlighting the tremendous seasons Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam, and Myles Turner have been having.
More importantly, McNutt understands the history between these two teams. The Knicks haven’t reached the Eastern Conference Finals since 2000, when they faced the Reggie Miller-led Pacers, who broke Knicks fans’ hearts by winning the series in six games.
“This is gonna be a slugfest, and it’s really gonna be a battle of styles in it,” she concluded.
Whether McNutt’s prediction proves right will be decided this Wednesday, when the Knicks host Game 1 at Madison Square Garden, which is expected to have its most electrifying crowd in years. But it also presents Indiana with a prime chance to strike an early blow to New York’s hopes, especially with how magical Haliburton has been this season.
The Pacers pulled off a similar feat against the Cavs, winning twice at home to jump out to a 2-0 lead and shock the entire city of Cleveland. Mentally, that’s where they could have lost out.
Will Haliburton and the Pacers pick up where they left off? We’ll find out soon, when the action shifts to the Big Apple in just two days.
