In Game 1 or Game 2, he may have shot 40-plus FTs” – Reggie Miller recalls Larry Bird conceding the Pacers had no answer for Shaquille O’Neal
In Game 1 or Game 2, he may have shot 40-plus FTs” – Reggie Miller recalls Larry Bird conceding the Pacers had no answer for Shaquille O’Neal
The Indiana Pacers were deemed underdogs in their 2000 Finals matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers. Aside from the Lakers finishing the regular with a 67-15 record (11 more wins than the Pacers), they featured a dominant Shaquille O’Neal.
According to Pacers legend Reggie Miller, even their coaching staff acknowledged they had “no answer” for O’Neal. Thus, their plan to beat the Lakers was to send the big man to the foul line in as many possessions as possible.
“Larry Bird came to Mark Jackson and I, along with Rick Carlisle,” Miller said on the “Dan Patrick Show.” “He was like, ‘We have no answer for Shaq. We’re not gonna have any answer in this series. What we’re gonna do, Sam Perkins, Rik Smits, Dale Davis, we’re just gonna Hack-A-Shaq, and he’s gonna have to make free throws.”
“If you go back and look…I believe he averaged 25 to 30 free throws in that series. I believe in Game 1 or Game 2, he have shot 40-plus free throws.”
Larry Bird came to Mark Jackson and I, along with Rick Carlisle,” Miller said on the “Dan Patrick Show.” “He was like, ‘We have no answer for Shaq. We’re not gonna have any answer in this series. What we’re gonna do, Sam Perkins, Rik Smits, Dale Davis, we’re just gonna Hack-A-Shaq, and he’s gonna have to make free throws.”
“If you go back and look…I believe he averaged 25 to 30 free throws in that series. I believe in Game 1 or Game 2, he have shot 40-plus free throws.”
Like playing against Chamberlain
Bird knew that Indiana’s frontcourt would have a tough time keeping O’Neal out of the paint, even though it consisted of several big bodies. Shaq may have even been motivated to go up against Smits, who he once said was one of the four players he feared during his career.
