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INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle knew exactly what was heading his way after his team lost Game 3 to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night in their second-round series. Questions were coming about the many things that went wrong for Indiana during the 126-104 defeat, one that reduced their series lead to 2-1.
Anticipating some of the inquiries, Carlisle bagan to rattle off a few of the issues his team had throughout the action. The problem was not that there were mistakes – instead, the issue was how many there were and how different they appeared to be. Carlisle began by looking at his team’s poor first few minutes of play, and his 83-second opening remarks covered much more.
He touched on an off night from one of the Pacers best players. Carlisle questioned his own effort preparing his team. The Pacers’ work against a 3-2 zone defense needed to be better, and the head coach owned it. One of those factors is perhaps the most important for the blue and gold, but they all matter – as does rebounding, something Carlisle quickly addressed after his initial statement.
“They brought the fight to us,” Pacers All-Star forward Pascal Siakam said after Game 3. “We can let that happen.”
The little things Indiana’s head coach laid out all were problems during a rough Game 3 loss. The Cavs new-look zone defense was a challenge, for example, as the visitors shifted into a unique alignment that slowed down the Pacers.
Evan Mobley, the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year, was mostly at the top of the zone causing problems. When he was positioned on the bottom, he was similarly impactful. It forced the Pacers to stop and think more than they typically want to, and it was another example of zone defenses giving the Pacers trouble this season.
“Just watch the film,” Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin said of getting better against that zone. “Learning from it and doing it.”
Rebounding was a struggle for the Pacers, too. Various players and the coaching staff stressed how important the battle on the glass was for Indiana after Game 1 and Game 2, a pair of Pacers wins. They knew, even in victory, that they needed to up their level on the boards.
Instead, Game 3 was a mess. The Cavs had 56 rebounds with just 37 being pulled in by the Pacers. It wasn’t close. That imbalance gave Cleveland 20 extra shot attempts throughout the game, a major advantage for an already-potent team.
“We got hurt on the boards a bit,” Pacers center Myles Turner said the day after Game 1. “You negate some of that, the lead grows for us.”
That thinking didn’t end up being a part of future games. During the series, the Cavaliers have 142 rebounds while the Pacers have 124. It hasn’t been close. Indiana needs to catch up in the possession battle.
“We got killed on the boards,” Carlisle said after Game 3.
Other little things, such as slow starts, have been crushing for the Pacers a few times in this series. And the team knows it well – Carlisle and multiple players have noted it several times. But the biggest concern for the team goes beyond some of these little things. While they are important and can swing games, improvement in the above areas alone may not be enough.
The Pacers need more from Tyrese Haliburton going forward in the series
Tyrese Haliburton, the Pacers multi-time All-Star point guard, nailed an epic shot to win Game 2 for the Pacers. He averaged 20.5 points and 8.5 assists per game in the first two battles against Cleveland, and his team won both of them. He started the series strong.
In Game 3, the Cavs did everything they could to slow him down. It worked. The aforementioned zone defense was a part of it, but the Cavaliers were also face guarding Haliburton all over the floor throughout the night. They weren’t going to let him get going and forced other Indiana players to initiate.
On one hand, the Pacers essentially had four-on-four opportunities with Haliburton and his defender all but hugging 30+-feet from the rim. They didn’t take advantage of the extra space during those chances, though. On the other hand, the blue and gold have always been at their best when Haliburton can use his gravity, passing, and shooting as often as possible. Haliburton has to find space against any coverage, but his teammates also have to help him be open and effective.
“It’s just an interesting challenge, just learning how to counter that [type of defense]. I’ve got to do a better job keeping myself involved as a screener, creating chaos, creating movement myself,” Haliburton said the day after Game 3. “I think I’m getting in the habit of just standing, which doesn’t help anybody.”
There’s also a wide gap between what Haliburton has been doing for much of this playoffs and what he did in Game 3. He finished that outing with four points and five assists – his worst postseason scoring out in his career. Five assists is his third-fewest in a playoff game, though he did only have four in Game 2.
Basketball Reference’s Game Score metric says that Game 3 was Haliburton’s worst playoff game to date. It’s reasonable to assume that he will be better on Sunday night even if there are minimal adjustments, though many should be expected. The Gold Medalist is battling a sore non-shooting wrist, too. But Haliburton’s most recent outing was poor to the point that the Pacers have to make changes. They need to get him going.
“Screen for him in the backcourt. In the halfcourt, just be more intentional about getting him open,” Turner said of getting Haliburton going when he’s being covered like he was Friday night. “It’s nothing we haven’t seen before.”
The face guarding strategy the Cavs deployed shows how effective they know Haliburton can be. They’re willing to live with other players beating them, and nobody was able to in Game 3. Part of the improvement from the Pacers against prevent-Haliburton plans will come from better play elsewhere.
But the star guard has to get going and get in the paint. The Pacers are undeniably at their best when he plays that way – and their offense is eight points per 100 possessions better when Haliburton is on the floor in the postseason. He needs to be freed going forward.
“Sun came up this morning. It’s unfortunate, didn’t have a very good performance last night,” Haliburton said of Game 3. “But it’s more film for me to look at, more stuff for me to figure out. It’s all part of the process. Understand it’s not what I want to see from myself.”
Game 4 will be telling when it comes to the direction of this series. One of the Pacers superpowers in recent seasons has been their ability to respond to tough moments or losses, and Game 3 was their largest defeat this postseason. They have three playoff losses by 20-plus points the last two seasons – Indiana won the following battle the previous two times.
The team used their film time on Saturday to look at the things that slowed them down in Game 3. They’ll be more prepared, and perhaps better, against zones and on the glass in Game 4. Getting off to a better start will be important, too. But all of that may not be enough if Haliburton can’t get going. His improvement, along with several little things, will be the story of a pivotal Game 4 for the Pacers.
