The Indiana Pacers are really feeling the heat in their playoff series against the New York Knicks, and they're not keeping quiet about it. They've been hitting up the league office, protesting a whopping 49 calls they thought were total bogus in Game 2. And that's not all—they protested 29 calls in Game 1 too.
Now, there's been a lot of chatter about whether the refs are playing fair or if there's some big market bias going on. Fans have been buzzing about it, saying the officiating seems all out of whack, especially on social media. I mean, there was this one call on Donte DiVincenzo that had everyone scratching their heads, but when the Pacers got a raw deal in Game 1, nobody seemed to bat an eye.
The games themselves have been pretty wild too. The Pacers start off strong, but then the Knicks come roaring back in the second half. And yeah, the foul count is tipping slightly in the Knicks' favor, but Tyrese Haliburton isn't pointing fingers at the refs for their struggles. He's keeping it real and focusing on what his team needs to do better.
Coach Rick Carlisle isn't exactly thrilled with the officiating either. It's giving him some déjà vu from Daryl Morey's complaints back in 2018 when his Rockets were facing off against the Warriors. Morey raised a fuss about calls favoring Golden State, but it didn't change much in the end.
Let's be real, though—don't hold your breath for the league to admit they messed up. The Pacers are just hoping maybe, just maybe, the refs will ease up a bit for the rest of the series. But even if they do, it's not gonna fix the fact that they're struggling to contain Jalen Brunson, and their front court game is looking shaky with Myles Turner and Aaron Nesmith.
Bottom line? Indiana's gotta step it up and find some answers on the court. Barking at the NBA about bad calls isn't gonna cut it.
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