It was not difficult to draw a direct line from the Pacers’ second-half stumble in a 106-100 Game 3 Eastern Conference finals home loss to the New York Knicks on Sunday night to an injury to one of their shining stars of the playoff run.
Aaron Nesmith, the maestro of the Game 1 steal at Madison Square Garden with his 8-for-9 shooting from the 3-point line., rolled his right ankle after he drove the baseline and landed on defender Jalen Brunson’s right foot. The Pacers were leading by 13 points at the time of the injury (6:06 left in the third quarter).