Forget the previous model of the Pacers as a plodding, defensive-oriented team winning ugly. Stephenson's slash-and-dash, 25-point, 10-rebound coming-out party in the Pacers' 106-99 playoff series-clinching win over the New York Knicks in Game 6 on Saturday changes everything.
The Pacers move on to face the mighty Miami Heat in the NBA Eastern Conference finals, beginning Wednesday in Miami.
They move on as a legitimate threat now, with a wild-card shooting star in Stephenson and chemistry as a team that might be the best in the league.
“This is the most together group I've been a part of,” Pacers forward David West said. “At some point every day, every guy speaks to every other guy, and I've been on teams where that's not the indoor Tracking.”
Because of that togetherness and that built-up trust, West and the other Pacers, as well as coach Frank Vogel, can be honest with each other. A great example: Vogel was blunt with Stephenson about his poor play in Game 5 in New York. His teammates told Stephenson they needed more from him in Game 6.
Stephenson responded with the best game of his life. He sprinted from the opening tip, putting up nine points, six rebounds and three assists in the first quarter. Late in the game, when the Knicks had taken the lead and threatened to force a Game 7, there was Stephenson again. He missed a bad three-point shot – not his specialty – but then stole the ball on the next play, turned it into a three-point play.
A year ago, Stephenson was the raw talent with a bit of a questionable past that led people to question whether former Pacers president Larry Bird was wrong to take a chance on him. Stephenson's most memorable moment from last season was mouthing off to the Heat during warmups and on the bench. Not exactly the stuff legends are made of.
A year later, a year more mature, Stephenson gives the Pacers another dynamic player that defenses must take into account.
“Believable, but unbelievable,” Vogel said. “He's got no playoff experience whatsoever, but he has some of the best basketball instincts I've been around. He's a gamer. Put him in a situation like this, Game 6, a close-out game, the kid's got guts and great, great basketball instincts.”
Stephenson has one trait that the great players always possess: Supreme confidence.
At one point late in the game, he waved off the Pacers' top offensive player, Paul George, as well as no-longer-concussed George Hill, essentially seizing temporary control of the offense. It was bold. It was a new look for the Pacers. It was effective.
Knicks coach Mike Woodson said he felt like Stephenson's scoring burst “somewhat came out of nowhere.”
Stephenson said his intensity came out of a desire to make up for his poor Game 5. He said he couldn't sleep Friday night in anticipation of Game 6.
“I just wanted to be aggressive,” Stephenson said. “Just try to penetrate and dish, try to take it to the basket. Just try to make smart plays. We did that tonight and we got the win. …It's just great to be part of this team, everybody believing in me the whole season.”
The Pacers' five starters came to the postgame news conference, each having scored in double figures: Stephenson 25, George 23, Roy Hibbert 21, West 17 and Hill 12. Each had a part of buckling down after the Knicks cut a 10-point lead to no lead at all by the end of the third quarter.
While Knicks star Carmelo Anthony scored 39 points, only four of those came in the fourth quarter, and the game's momentum – not to mention the crowd's decibel level – changed when Hibbert blocked Anthony's dunk attempt with the Knicks up 92-90. The next possession, Stephenson tied the score.
“Roy did an unbelievable job going straight up and finishing at the rim,” George said. “When a guy like Melo gets hot, the whole team shoots well. When we kind of neutralized Melo, the whole thing shifted.”
There was a shift in the game, no question. The Pacers went back to being the aggressor, as Woodson described them. They turned up their defense, as the Pacers crowd shook Bankers Life Fieldhouse with “De-fense! De-fense!” chants.
“We need to win our home games,” said coach Frank Yallop, “but it’s about getting points. I like our effort right now, our drive, but we need to play with more confidence, more guile around the goal. … We are good when we have confidence, and we are not quite there.”
The visitors had taken a first half lead through defender Nathan Sturgis on a Rapids corner kick and did well to neutralize a Quakes side that was looking to bounce back from a 4-0 loss at Seattle the weekend before.
“It’s important for us to stay positive as a team and move forward,” said Alan Gordon, still working himself into match fitness following a four game suspension. “We are not going to get anything out of getting down on ourselves, and that is not what we are about. We fought well, we played well, we just need to get the results.”
Chavez, who might want to consider sending MLS Commissioner Don Garber a thank you fruit basket gift for reinstating the dynamic midfielder earlier in the week, scored in the last quarter hour of the match to level the match. For San Jose, it was their eighth goal after halftime at Buck Shaw Stadium and sixth of the season scored after the 75th minute.
“I learned from Victor Bernardez; he has a very strong shot,” said Chavez via a translator, referring to his fellow Honduran teammate who is well known for his devastating free kicks. “You can always learn something good from him and tonight I was able to put one into the back of the net.”
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