Jalen Smith is nicknamed Stix for a reason. Wiry with long arms, the strength imbalance between he and Isaiah Stewart, as a 6-foot-8 chunk of toned muscle, was expected on Friday night; and yet, also unsuspecting. After all, Beef Stew wasn’t so much tenderizing Indiana’s herd of youthful bigs with brawn on the block, as he was flexing his know-how, repeatedly creating open paths to the basket, whether with snake screens or duck-ins, in a way that could stand to be emulated by the Pacers — particularly as it pertains to the latter.
Think of it this way.