In the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, the 76ers' game against the Hornets can only be regarded as a supporting role, and the real protagonist is the Pacers vs. Knicks.

Before 1993, few people paid attention to the Indiana Pacers, and very few people paid attention to Miller, and while they were very strong, they were quite low-key. In 1993, Miller led the Pacers to meet the Knicks in the first round of the Eastern Conference, although the Pacers lost 1-3, but this was the first time in his life that New Yorkers knew that the low-key Indiana had such a ruthless character. Not only is the three-point accuracy accurate, but also a ruthlessness, even if the body is as thin as a hemp rod. In the third quarter of the third game of the first round of the playoffs, Miller was fighting with Starks, and the two did not give in, head-to-head, Starks was sent off, and Miller finally led the team to the only victory of the series with 36 points. Since then, Miller's feud against the New York Knicks, that is, the feud between the Pacers and the Knicks, began. On June 1, 1994, the Pacers faced the New York Knicks in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The two sides had previously drawn 2-2, with the fifth game being played at Madison Square Garden in New York.

With the Pacers falling behind by a lot of points before the start of the fourth quarter, all the New Yorkers waited to see Miller make a fool of themselves and prepared a lot of boos to send him off. And the New York Knicks' super fan of Hollywood director Spike? Lee was also extremely insulting on the sidelines. This time, though, Miller disappointed all New Yorkers.

He scored 25 points in the final quarter, including five three-pointers, and every shot he hit was a run to Spike? Lee exchanged trash talk and engaged in a war of words. In the end, he scored a game-high 39 points to lead the Pacers to a comeback on the road. Then he left New York with all the hatred of New Yorkers and pride. It was the first time that the "Miller Moment" was broadcast live across the United States, and although the New York Knicks eventually won the Eastern Conference Finals that year, Miller's performance in Game 5, Fourth Quarter, went into one of the most incredible performances in playoff history.

On May 7, 1995, the Pacers and Knicks met again in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Knicks were playing at home, with the New York Knicks leading by six points with 18.7 seconds left before the break, and many thought the game was over, only Miller believed that a miracle would happen. As a result, within the last 8.9 seconds. Miller hit two three-pointers. plus two free throws to score eight points and help the Pacers complete the most amazing comeback in NBA history 107-105. In his post-game interview, Miller's first words were: dedicated to you. Indiana!

1 May 1998. Miller hit a three-pointer with 2.9 seconds left in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Knicks. Take both sides into overtime. In the end, the Pacers defeated the Knicks 118-107, and Miller scored 38 points in the game.

On June 2, 2000, Miller scored 34 points in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals to lead the Pacers to a victory over the New York Knicks. After 10 years of hard work. Miller finally helped the Pacers reach the Finals for the first time ever.

And now, the grudge continues, and the game continues.

That's it, the matchup between the 76ers and the Hornets that was supposed to be the war of the century was only watched by the 76ers' diehards and those sports commentators who had nothing to do.

However, the 76ers' home attendance is still good.

"Thankfully, there are still home fans to support us!" Reed sighed.

"Okay, don't worry too much, wouldn't it be good to reach the finals, the whole world will be staring at you at that time!" Luke smiled and stroked Reed's head.

"Alright, let's go on the field!"

The Charlotte Hornets lineup for the 76ers is quite familiar.

The backcourt combination of David Wesley and Barang Davis, Marshburn at small forward, Elden Campbell and PJ Brown on the inside, and Derrick Coleman was pressed off the bench. This is not only to show that the team loves him, after all, he is back in the line of fire and needs to rest more, but also to show the team's unease about him.

However, in terms of the lineup on the court, except for small forwards, the 76ers have advantages elsewhere.

That's right, the weakest link for the 76ers right now is Luke.

Against Mashburn, Luke had no advantage in defending him.

Mashburn's back-to-back jumper is basically unsolvable. Due to the influence of inertia, after being singled by Mashburn, Luke was unable to jump up and block Mashburn's shot. I could only watch him shoot.

However, the hit rate of this move in Mashburn is quite good, and basically the hit rate can reach about 80% if there is no interference. This shooting percentage is a big headache for the 76ers.

Throughout the first half, the Hornets scored a total of 50 points, 32 of which were scored by Marshburn. Luke was basically beaten into a stopper. Not only Luke, but others who replaced Luke, such as Tony Cook, couldn't guard Mashburn.

Just when everyone was trying to figure out how to prevent Mashburn, Kukoc's words woke everyone up, "Mashburn's back swaying and turning over jumper was learned from Michael Jordan, I can't let it go!" ”

Yes, it was the most powerful move in Joe's later career, when almost all the best defenders in the league couldn't do anything about it, let alone the people now.

Well, since the defense is useless, then use another way. Offensive!

Offense is the best defense, although Larry has never believed in this sentence, but now he is also going to use the tactics of fast break counterattack.

Since it was a quick counterattack, then Rashid Wallace didn't have much effect. Larry put Luke up to play power forward, and Bryan came up to play small forward, so that the 76ers had a different lineup.

The 76ers are very skilled in this lineup, and when Luke is on top of the power forward now, he is extremely attacking.

There wasn't even anything to prepare, just Aaron and Reed lifting the ball and Luke knew where to go.

"Bang dang!" Once again, Luke catches Allen's pass and dunks the ball into the basket.

This is already the sixth empty catch since the start of the third quarter. PJ Brown simply couldn't defend.

After all, Luke's attack range was too big, and it was already outside the three-point line, and PJ Brown had to defend it. Luke, on the other hand, is smaller than him and more agile than him, so it is very difficult to defend like this. Luke quickly slipped to the baseline and prepared for the air relay, PJ Brown couldn't keep up, and at this time, Elden Campbell, who was the center, had to come out to see Luke, but in this way, Big Ben had a chance. It's also an air relay, and Big Ben can do it, and when Luke is targeted, Big Ben starts to wield his might. Unlike Luke, Big Ben prefers to smash the ball straight into the basket.

After Luke scored the ball, the 76ers finally took the lead.

Offense and defense are exchanged, and the Hornets attack. David Wesley controlled the ball, and Reid immediately stuck to it to press.

Wesley, of course, won't be easily stealed, after all, he's been mixing his real name in the league for years. But David Wesley is only 1.83 meters tall, and his height is also behind Aaron in this camp, and in Reed's opinion, it is still too short.

He could only be able to defeat Reed for a while.

There's no way but to pass the ball.

"Chance!" David Wesley felt it as soon as Allen made a move, so he gave up the defense directly and flew to steal.

"Damn it!" David Wesley and Baron Davis also immediately discovered the problem and hurried back to defense.

Allen wasn't afraid of the two of them, even if Wesley was on the verge of catching up with him.

Allen used his second acceleration again, shook it off, and David Wesley, came with a two-handed slam dunk.

"David!" Mashburn stopped Wesley, "Wait and give me the ball!" I'll fight! ”

"yes, I understand!" Wesley replied. He can now see clearly that the current Hornets still have only Marshburn as the most consistent scoring point.

At this time, the Hornets also made a substitution, replacing PJ Brown with a break, and letting Derrick Coleman come up and strengthen the offense. Although basketball is a championship for defense, after all, it is a game of scoring more points to win, and the most important thing now is to score. What's more, now that the Hornets have entered a scoring drought, Derrick Coleman is the best choice to continue to score players.

However, David Wesley still chose to give the ball to the more comfortable Marsh Ben to play, and Derrick Coleman did not receive the ball. This made him a little unhappy, but he didn't say anything, still waiting for his chance. (To be continued......)