3 Challenges the Knicks need to be prepared to overcome against the Pacers

The New York Knicks are gearing up for a highly anticipated second-round series against the Pacers, and it will be no easy task.

New York just escaped a dogfight of a series in Philadelphia, and the Pacers took down a Bucks squad without Giannis Anteotkounmpo and Damian Lillard for most of the series. The Knicks will need to overcome some challenges as the Eastern Conference Semifinals approach.

3 Challenges the Knicks need to be ready for in the second round

1. Indiana's fast-paced offense

The Pacers are the definition of a "run-and-gun" team, with a pace of 102.16 (second in the NBA). Their youth, with an average age of 25.4, is the main reason behind that. Players like Tyrese Haliburton, Aaron Nesmith, and Andrew Nembhard can run the floor with or without the ball and space the floor to knock down shots in transition.

Luckily, New York can overcome this challenge with its elite defense. The Knicks' defense ranks third in the NBA since January 1, mainly due to OG Anunoby. It will be interesting to see who will match up with Haliburton, as the one thing New York needs to do is not let him push the ball up the middle of the floor, as that's his bread and butter when working in transition.

Players like T.J. McConnell and Obi Toppin also love running ahead in transition, with McConnell pushing the ball if Haliburton isn't handling it and Toppin as a rim-runner.

2. Streaky shooting

The Knicks' starters were very up-and-down when knocking down shots against Philadelphia. Each game felt scrappy and defense-oriented, but against Indiana, this will not be the case.

New York will have to keep up with Indiana's high-scoring offense, so the guards must be consistent. Donte DiVincenzo shot under 50 percent from the field in all but one game in the first round, with just two double-digit scoring games.

Jalen Brunson had some shooting woes in the first two games but quickly picked it up, finishing with averages of 35.5 points, 9.0 assists, and 4.5 rebounds per game against the 76ers.

Josh Hart was one of the Knicks' most consistent shooters in the first round, shooting 50 percent or better in four of the six games. Will he get the same opportunities in this series? It's tough to tell, as the Pacers can easily make adjustments on him and turn him back into an off-the-ball player.

Anunoby didn't shoot much from deep in the first round, taking just 24 threes in the entire series, but he was so effective from the mid-range. His near-perfect shot selection allowed him to average 15 points on 51.5 percent shooting from the field.

3. A road crowd with not as many Knicks fans

It seemed like the Knicks played six straight home games, as so many fans were able to travel down the New Jersey Turnpike to get to Wells Fargo Center because of its proximity. This time, the Knicks will travel to the Midwest, where the chants for New York will be few and far between.

Even Michael Rubin and the Sixers buying 2,500 tickets for Game 6 couldn't keep Knicks fans out of Philly. There is a solid number of fans in enemy territory, but for round two, it looks like it will mainly be Pacers fans.

The crowd in Indiana is electric and underrated. Just listen to their crowd in their Game 6 victory against the Bucks.

The loud sea of yellow has the potential to be a factor, as we've seen with home-court advantage this playoffs. The home team went undefeated in Game 1 of each first-round series this season, and the only two teams without home-court advantage that ended up winning their respective series were the Pacers and Mavericks, with the Cavaliers-Magic series being decided on Sunday in Game 7.