What was supposed to be a first-round NBA playoff series has turned into a fight over referee privilege.
The Philadelphia 76ers say they do not get enough calls. So do the New York Knicks. No one is happy, a sentiment that has blocked out the strategic storylines of what is becoming a vitriolic matchup.
Finally, after a couple of hard-fought games that the Knicks snagged, the Sixers have their first victory, a 125-114 win Thursday that narrowed their series deficit to 2-1. The talk over the ensuing 24 hours has surrounded the officials.
The Knicks first brought referees into the conversation, when heading into Game 1 they added ref tendency statistics to the game notes they hand to media, a move that irked both the 76ers and the league office.
Then came the drama: A messy final few minutes of Game 2, a bonkers Last Two Minute Report that said Tyrese Maxey was fouled twice inside the last 30 seconds even though it was not called, an unofficial grievance from the 76ers, a flagrant Game 3 and fouls aplenty on Joel Embiid, which helped the reigning MVP reach a playoff career-high of 50 points on only 19 shot attempts Thursday.
But in the middle of this battle to curry favor with NBA official Zach Zarba, another plot has popped up: The 76ers and Knicks are submerged in a tight playoff series. Instead of harping on fouls or non-fouls or who is receiving the greater benefit from the whistle, let’s break down some basketball.
Here are five trends to follow as the Knicks and 76ers prepare for Game 4 at 1 p.m. (ET) Sunday in Philadelphia:
Everyone scores
For all the talk from both sides about swallowed whistles, it’s not like teams have struggled to score.
Embiid has grumbled about not receiving enough foul calls. Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau has done so on behalf of his top player, Jalen Brunson. And yet, a quick scroll through the league’s playoff leaders shows two names atop the NBA in free-throw attempts per game: Embiid is first and Brunson is second.
Meanwhile, both of their teams can’t stop scoring.
Because the pace has been slow, it’s not so obvious, but both the Knicks’ and 76ers’ attacks have overpowered defenders. These two teams rank first and second in the NBA in points per possession during the playoffs.
The Knicks have dominated not just with shooting but also on the boards. Josh Hart refuses to miss 3s. The group has nailed more than 40 percent of its deep balls through three games. Most importantly, it is grabbing rebounds on 40 percent of its missed shots, a monstrous start to the postseason. For perspective, no team has secured this many offensive boards during a playoff run since the 2013-14 Houston Rockets.
Demolishing the Portland Trail Blazers on the glass wasn’t enough for the Rockets to survive that series, which ended in six games on a Damian Lillard buzzer-beater. The 76ers are trying to exterminate the Knicks similarly.
They have paraded to the free-throw line. Maxey has sliced New York apart with his speed and stepbacks. Meanwhile, Embiid is showing why he’s more than just a low-post giant or foul baiter. Playing with a still-injured knee, he has relied more on his jumper. All he’s done in that time is nail 38 percent of his 3s and 12 of his 20 midrange shots.
Targeting Brunson
An unfortunate theme for the Knicks popped up during the third quarter of Game 3.
The Sixers caught fire, roaring to 43 points on 17-of-22 overall shooting and 9-of-12 long-range shooting. And the way they created many of those looks, ones that wove their jump shots into silk, was with a needle poking the Knicks’ best player.
Philadelphia placed Brunson in screening actions aplenty during the third period. The Knicks did not respond well enough to it.
Once the Sixers forced Brunson — who went for 39 points, making Game 3 his best of the series — to switch to one of their best offensive players, they attacked. On one play early in the second half, they forced Brunson onto Embiid, who swished in a nonchalant…
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