PHILADELPHIA – It is a mortal sin ever to look anywhere but the next game in the postseason, especially this post-Jordan one when nothing can be factored out of the realm. And of course the Pacers, fearing Larry Bird would have a bird if they hint otherwise, say this semifinal series they lead 2-0 over the scratchy Sixers is far from over.
That said, the feeling is there: A collision is coming.
The minute the Knicks beat the Heat in Game 5, thoughts turned to what’s next – and Reggie Miller came to mind. And the minute the Pacers outlasted a Sixers team that doesn’t get that it’s not supposed to play the Eastern Conference’s favorite this tough in Game 2, Patrick Ewing came to mind. After all, the Knicks have wrested homecourt from Atlanta and the matchup seems favorable.
See? The stars are aligning.
Remember The Shimmy …
For now, the Pacers focus on the Sixers, and Mark Jackson isn’t gyrating. Nobody gyrates in the second round, especially when the opponent comes back from a 17-point deficit to make the game a sweat at the end. Both games were too close for Bird, even if it’s the playoffs and Bird says “all the games should be close.” The Pacers won the first 94-90, the second 85-82, both in Indiana, with Game 3 tonight at Philadelphia’s First Union Center.
This gives the Sixers hope when reality says it’s not their time yet. This also gives hope to those in New York with the same feeling of the future.
But let this hope be tempered.
The Pacers are indeed playing just good enough to win, which includes five straight this postseason, which includes a last-minute overtime tip by Dale Davis to beat the Bucks in the first round. Consider, they shot only 39.5 percent from the field and missed four clutch free throws down the stretch in Game 2 – and survived. But all that means is they haven’t played their best ball yet.
‘No, I don’t think we’ve played close to our best game yet,” Jalen Rose said.
“It is a matter of survival if you want to win,” Bird said. “At least we’re winning these games now. It seems to come down to a couple of key rebounds or a couple of key shots in crunch time, and we haven’t been making them lately. I don’t like the way we are playing.”
“Lucky? There’s no such thing as luck,” Jackson said. “We did what we had to do.”
To the naked eye, the Pacers might seem vulnerable. But they still lead 2-0 in the series, and it’s doubtful, even with the backing of a raucous crowd, the Sixers can climb this hill. “If we hadn’t won [Game 2] this series would have become very interesting,” Jackson said.
Now don’t expect the Sixers roll over for the sweep. Part of the reason the Pacers look so beatable is because of the Sixers, an emotionally charged team making its bones for a future postseasons. “They’re playing on emotion,” Miller said. “They’re young and energetic. They’re there having fun. It’s like they’re playing on sheer will. That can get you by and win you a lot of ballgames.”
It won them the Orlando series. A team with hollow character is vulnerable to the Sixers. But the Pacers were built by Sixers coach Larry Brown for the spring. And they made their bones last year, coming within one minute of dethroning the Bulls in Game 7 in Chicago. They won’t wow you, but they find a way to win.
“Regardless of what happens, we’re helping Indiana because these are games that will help them down the road,” Brown said.
Down the road against who? Much can happen, yes, but a feeling lurks. Remember The Shimmy.
