Indiana Pacers star Pascal Siakam praised his teammates for the influence he had after his Game 3 victory.
The Indiana Pacers are up 2-1 after a tough, contested victory in their first home game of the NBA Finals.
In the fourth quarter, the Oklahoma City Thunders were unable to hold back the rampant Pacers team that had powered to score 116-107.
Despite the poor viewer rating, the two teams have won one of the most equally matched and exciting final games over the years, with a real plot about who will win.
Eastern Conference Finals MVP Pascal Siakam continued his impressive playoff scoring run with 21 points, but he was praising his teammates.
Pascal Siakam highly praised his teammate Obi Toppin after the game and praised his natural athletic ability.
Siakam declares Toppin as one of the fastest majors in the league, and the former Knicks player claims he is “perfect” for Pacers-style play.
He said at a press conference:
“When he’s offensive, I just love it, defense, running, and again, using his athletic ability, whatever he can do there as a big thing he can move, using his athletic ability, and doing what he can do there.
“He’s great for us and yeah, the whole bench, not just Obi, but the whole bench was really great, they had an impact on the game and they played with so much energy.”
The admiration between the two is mutual, with Toppin previously praised Siakam’s influence and his experience playing in the NBA Finals with Toronto, and how it helps the Pacer behind the scenes.
The show’s star was Benedict Matlin, who scored 27 points from the bench, surpassing 24 by Shy Gilgas Alexander.
Siakam commented: “I think it was great to be offensive. That’s who we want to be and when he gets offensive, he’s aggressive in defense. He’s picking a full court.
“He’s cutting, and I look easy to him, like when he’s doing that.
Star’s teammate Tyreese Halliburton was a triple-double rebound shy in his best scoring match, 22-9-11.
Siakam wants to see more of the same from the star.
“So I’m not really worried about his goals. I know he’s going to play right.
“But when he’s meant to do all the plays, I know something good will happen, so as long as he keeps doing that, we’ll be fine.”
Another major impact maker was TJ McConnell. He tipped in with 10 points and five assists after stealing in the fourth quarter.
Siakam revealed he was impressed with his contributions. “The crowd clearly loves him when TJ plays with that type of energy.
“He was special tonight when he ran the floor for us, positioned us, added those steels and took the crowd into the game his way. It wasn’t a score.
“It was just his energy and what he did. We just stole, put us in a certain state, and found people who cut back on the situation.”
