The New York Knicks entered Sunday night's contest against the Indiana Pacers with their backs against the wall. Down 2–0 in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals series, they desperately need a win if they want to advance to their first NBA Finals since 1999.
Even still, head coach Tom Thibodeau—normally known for playing his stars to the brink no matter the circumstance—decided to toy with New York's lineup quite a bit in the first half. Not only did they opt to start Mitchell Robinson over Josh Hart, but at one point, the Knicks had both Delon White and Landry Shamet on the floor at the same time. For context, neither guard played a single minute in the team's Game 2 loss on Friday.
