A game that overall went smoothly, with a bit more twists and turns than the game against the Bulls.
But the Pacers became the ultimate winners, to the surprise of many commentators.
Bill Walton said, "Their manner of play at many moments in this game was aggressive, yet very effective. We saw shades of the Phoenix Suns and the SuperSonics, but we could also distinctly feel the differences between them."
"We all know that at certain times in this league, many teams played a fast-paced offense where both sides could rack up over 300 points in a game."
"This season, we’ve seen the familiar Suns and SuperSonics, which made us think the era of fast-paced play was coming back. Now, the Pacers have shown us a new way of playing: they combine fast attacks with defense. After a successful defense, they launch an outstanding fast-paced offense. Will this be the trend of the future? I don’t know, but I can say for sure that this was a successful experiment."
In the ABC studio, a white commentator was extremely excited, "This will be the play style of the future. We all know that David Stern’s series of initiatives in the past – the defensive three-second rule, allowing zone defense, and last year’s newly enacted rule prohibiting hand-checking – have all made players keep moving and expanded the space on the court. In fact, the Pacers’ play style for a long period has been to capitalize on space. I must say, Rick Carlisle is a genius. From this Pacers’ lineup change, I’ve seen the future!"
"If this team tries more three-point shots, and goes magical..."
He was so spitting mad that his partner had to stop him, "Steve, Steve, you need to calm down first. This is just the first game. Let’s talk about whether you think the Pistons will be able to make a successful lineup change and bounce back in the next game?"
The "Steve" being halted wasn’t anyone else but the white guard who punched Michael Jordan, the future "Warrior Dynasty" head coach, Steve Kerr.
He watched this game with shining eyes.
In this game, his favorite team was the Suns, and his favorite player was Steve Nash.
Now, the Pacers had also become one of his favorite teams.
He liked the Pacers’ style of play and even proposed many ideas that he thought could make it better.
He was caught in a wild "self-thinking time" and had no idea what his co-commentator was saying.
No choice, ABC’s director had to switch the camera back to Auburn Palace.
Su Wan, having struck a pose, was taking a courtside interview.
Tonight he made 9 of 21 shots, 3 of 4 free throws, and scored 21 points altogether, with an additional 6 rebounds and a playoff career-high of 8 assists.
Tonight he experienced the joy of Deron Williams.
Fixed-point passing could really greatly enhance a player’s passing ability, making it seem like they had a good field of view. He now understood why, back when he was with the Cavaliers, Selas always had them practice fixed-point positioning around LeBron...
What?
You say LeBron’s field of view was inherently strong, and he even got the "Assist King" title?
That’s when you have to mention his career average of 7.2 assists per game and 3.6 turnovers.
Which exceptional passer has an assist-to-turnover ratio of only 2?
Like in this game, Su Wan had 8 assists to 3 turnovers. Given that he played point-breaking for so long tonight, he should have gotten more than 10 assists...
Customized is customized, fake is fake; it will never become real.
The reporter’s first question was about Su Wan’s prolonged "arm-folding" gesture, "We noticed you kept doing this action. Was this a celebration you had thought of beforehand?"
Su Wan said, "No, at that moment, I just wanted to fully enjoy the feeling of winning, so I stopped and made a gesture I thought was comfortable to savor it all."
"But you caused some disturbance, and I think you must have noticed that."
Su Wan implied, "Compared to the last time the Pacers caused a riot here, what I did was nothing."
The courtside interview ended quickly, and as it went on, Su Wan became less enthusiastic. The reporter thought he was tired and ended the interview.
When it was Erin’s turn to interview, Su Wan perked up again; he now preferred Erin’s style of questioning.
"Ben Wallace said he would show you what real playoffs are like. So, after the first game against the Pistons, do you have a whole new view on the playoffs?"
Look!
That’s Erin!
Su Wan instantly got spirited, "He might think there’s a big difference between the Pistons and the Bulls. In fact, besides being more violent, there’s no difference between them and the Bulls. The Bulls look even more like the future."
Erin laughed, then asked the next question, which Su Wan loved to hear, "We noticed that after your celebration, Ben Wallace tried to disrupt it, but he was stopped in the end, and you completed your new celebration, which looked great, especially with the tumult next to it."
Su Wan said, "That’s Ben Wallace, trying hard to cover up his true character; he’s a sore loser. He presents himself as something great, but... that’s it!"