On March 11, 2002, the Pacers will play against the New Jersey Nets on the road, and this game is also the most important game of this round, because the result of this game will directly determine the current first place in the East, before this round of games, the Nets with a record of 39-22, long occupied the top spot in the East, and the Pacers also have a record of 39-22, followed by the Pistons and Celtics, after the All-Star Game, the record of the two teams is simply miserable, As a result, it fell out of the battle for the top spot.

Originally, after the All-Star Game, the Nets also experienced a wave of three consecutive defeats, but due to the adjustment of the lineup, the Pacers basically won one game and lost one game in all the remaining games in February, and it was a pity that they missed the best opportunity to overtake. Heading into March, the Pacers have tied the Nets in wins after a six-game winning streak, and if the Pacers can beat the Nets in today's game, the Pacers will be at the top of the table for the first time this season.

"Jamal, don't be so nervous, Kidd is not a tiger, he can't eat you." In the players' tunnel at the Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey, after arranging pre-game tactics and precautions, the Pacers left the locker room and waited in the players' tunnel to play. And Meng Xu made a little joke with Jamal Tinsley next to him, Jamal Tinsley will look very uncomfortable every time he faces Kidd, in the first three games of this season, Jamal Tinsley was eaten to death by Kidd, and there was no room to play at all, perhaps it was the shadow left in the previous games, this game has not yet started, and Jamal Tinsley looks very nervous. When Meng Xu teased Jamal Tinsley and decompressed him by the way, the other players in the locker room also laughed.

The game between the Pacers and the Nets, although it was only a regular season, attracted almost all the attention, as the only game in the United States that was broadcast live in this round, and it was also a strong dialogue between the first and second in the East, so this game, in the eyes of many bricks, is a preview of the Eastern Conference finals.

The NBA at this level continues to continue the pattern of being strong in the West and weak in the East, and has not changed because of Meng Xu and Kidd's eastward travel, and the Nets, who are temporarily ranked first in the East, have a slightly insufficient record compared to the Spurs, who are fourth in the West. After the rapid decline of the 76ers and the Bucks, the Nets and Pacers who rose this season have no opponents in the East, and some clues can be seen from the regular season matchups, at the beginning of the season, the Celtics and Pistons, who were once comparable to the Nets and Pacers, were swept by the Nets and the Pacers in the regular season this season.

At 8 o'clock in the evening, the entire Continental Airlines Stadium is already full of people, as one of the most popular superstars in the East, although there are few opportunities for the two to match, but Meng Xu VS Kidd, for many fans, it is also a visual feast, this season's Nets, under Kidd's combing, the team's offense is like a cloud of peers, and in addition to the improvement of the team's record, the basketball market that has been immortal is now also extremely hot.

Under the watchful eyes of the audience, the visiting Pacers, under the leadership of rookie Bobby Simmons, walked out of the players' tunnel one by one, not surprisingly, they were greeted by boos from the sky, and when Meng Xu finally played, the boos in the Continental Airlines Stadium reached its peak, and Meng Xu was as calm as ever, smiling and opening his arms to accept the welcome ceremony of the current Nets fans.

"Erwin, it looks like the Pacers are going to win this game." The Pacers who have finished playing, from head coach Larry Bird to the bench players, are all confident, and it can be seen that in the face of such a huge temptation as reaching the top of the East, the Pacers are full of fighting spirit.

"I didn't expect the Pacers to complete the rebuild so quickly, and Larry made a good deal." Magic Johnson is still angry about Meng Xu's joining the Pacers, because Magic believes that Larry Bird has completely broken the bet between the two by doing so. But Magic Johnson has to admit that Larry Bird's vision is really better than himself, or more than most of the people in this league. After Larry Bird resigned as head coach, the successor Isaiah Thomas took only one season to bring the Pacers into the abyss, and Larry Bird returned to the helm of the Pacers for only half a season, and the Pacers became the powerhouse of the East again.

While Michaels and Magic Johnson were still discussing whether Larry Bird would be the best head coach of the season or the best general manager again, the two teams that had already completed the warm-up had all the main players on the field.

In today's game, the Nets continued their starting lineup this season, with center Todd McCulkey, power forward Kenyon Martin, small forward Keith Van Horn, scoring guard Corey Kidders, and playmaking guard Jason Kidd. The Nets' starting lineup this season can be said to be the only 3 interior lineup in the entire league, Todd McCloche is 2.13 meters tall, Kenyon Martin is 2.06 meters, Keith Van Horn is 2.08 meters, and it is not an exaggeration to say that the Nets' interior strength is the strongest in the East. And the Nets' two forwards, Kenyon Martin and Keith Van Horne, are the kind of strongmen with interior height and outside skills, which is also an important reason why Byron Scott dares to play 3 inside.

On the Pacers' side, Reggie Miller was absent due to injury, so in today's game, Meng Xu also replaced Reggie Miller as a scoring guard, as for the other starters, center Lorenzen White, power forward Jermaine O'Neal, small forward James Posey, and playmaker Jamal Tinsley.

Today's Jermaine O'Neal is particularly excited, in the three meetings with the Nets this season, Jermaine O'Neal, who was isolated on the inside, was abused by the Nets' three insiders, and now Jermaine O'Neal, who has a helper, also wants to get back on the court in this game. When the referee blew the whistle, Jermaine O'Neal, who jumped on behalf of the Pacers, defeated Todd McCulkey of the Nets without any suspense.

"The Pacers have become Meng Xu who controls the ball?" Jermaine O'Neal's basketball in the backcourt, after being grabbed by James Posey, was immediately handed over to Meng Xu, who was originally going to force Jamal Tinsley to grab Kidd, but after seeing Meng Xu with the ball, he gave up this idea.

Since Jamal Tinsley entered the Pacers, he was just a nominal point guard, only responsible for dribbling the ball across the half court and handing it to Meng Xu, the Pacers' ball was always in Meng Xu's hands, and the Pacers' tactics were the same, handing over the basketball to Meng Xu, whether it was Meng Xu's singles with the ball, or the ball after the breakthrough, and in this game, it seems that Jamal Tinsley can't even do it as a dribble guard.