“Embarrassed The Knicks Tonight!”: Magic Johnson Left Impressed by Rick Carlisle Pacers’ After 116–103 Game 6 Win

The engrossing Eastern Conference semi-finals between the Indiana Pacers and the New York Knicks remains far from concluding. With a comfortable 116-103 victory in Game 6, the former has yet again leveled the series, paving the way for an exciting upcoming clash. Their recent home performance even impressed NBA stalwart Magic Johnson, prompting him to praise them publicly.

Soon after the conclusion of the game, Johnson took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his thoughts. The 64-year-old made an array of statements, applauding and summarizing the efforts of the Pacers. He initiated with high praise for the roster’s head coach, Rick Carlisle, mentioning,

“The Pacers got their payback and embarrassed the Knicks tonight! Coach Rick Carlisle did a masterful job preparing his team to play”.

Soon after that, the spotlight shifted to the Pacers’ players as six of them crossed double digits in scoring. Amongst them, Johnson shed light on the leading performers of the night, Paschal Siakim and Myles Turner, stating, “[Pascal Siakam] led with 25 points and 7 rebounds followed by Myles Turner’s 17 points and 7 rebounds”.

The contribution of the rotation players in this marvelous win also did not go unnoticed. The cameo from the veteran, T. J. McConnell, in particular, was crucial for the Pacers’ triumph as Johnson mentioned, “TJ McConnell was the spark plug for the Pacers tonight. He came off the bench and scored 15!”.

Following this, the 5x champion highlighted the impact of the team’s defensive structure in ensuring the victory. After all, the Knicks outscored the Pacers in only one-quarter of the game by merely a single point. Outlining this compact defense, Johnson announced, “I was really impressed with Pacers defense in tonight’s 116-103 victory, and the driving kick game on offense was off the charts”.

His comments captured the commendable competitive mindset of the Pacers. Despite trailing behind the Knicks twice in this series, they kept faith in their endeavors to mark comebacks. Amidst the doubts and minor injuries, the roster stuck together, propelling them to success on the home court every single time.

However, winning Game 7 at the Madison Square Garden could turn out to be a strenuous task for them. In this series, they have lost each of their games in this arena, stacking the odds severely against them.

Still, there remains a ray of hope following this victory. Additionally, the player will certainly not let the past results get the best out of them, considering the significance of the upcoming clash. So, the stage is set for a memorable game on Sunday.