9 years of Pacers, defender against O Neal, a 1-time NBA All-Star substitute

In the NBA inside world in the 1990s, Dell Davis is not the star with the most dazzling data, but he is the "inside goalkeeper" in the hearts of Pacers fans. He joined the 11th pick in the first round, and used 9 years to build a trench-level defense, and forced O'Neal and guarded the Pacers' penalty area. Although he was mostly blue-collar in his career, he became the team's soul-like existence with his iron blood and perseverance.

In 1991, the Pacers selected Davis, who was 2 meters 11 and 113 kilograms in the first round. At that time, the team had Reggie Miller's shooting skills and Schmitz's support, but there was only a defensive tough guy who "does dirty work". Davis quickly made up for his shortcomings: 11.7 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game in the 1993-94 season, helping the Pacers to enter the Eastern Conference Finals as a dark horse. In the first round, he even used tough confrontations to restrict O'Neal, allowing the Magic "Young Shark" to swallow the bitter fruit of being swept.

Playing for the Pacers for 9 years, Davis engraved "hard defense" into team history. In 2000, this blue-collar boy was selected as the All-Star substitute - not by gorgeous data, but by hand-to-hand combat O'Neal, Duncan and Garnett. In the G6 of the finals that year, he scored 20 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocks, almost rewriting the Lakers' winning script. Although the team lost, the title of "No. 32 Tough Guy" resounded throughout the league.

6 career playoffs against O'Neal, winning the series in the first round in 1994, and losing the remaining five times. But Davis never retreated - using solid positioning and tough confrontation, O'Neal had to "get elbowed" for every 1 point. Even if he lost the series, he used his defense to defend his dignity for the Pacers and became a typical representative of the inside battle against the "Four Centers" in the 1990s.

Nowadays, Pacers discuss "what is missing", three points and organization are superficial, and what they lack the most is the Davis-style "hard bones". Towns has comprehensive skills but is difficult to withstand heavy centers. When Davis dared to use his body to beat Jokic and Embiid, he used his hand-to-hand combat to protect the penalty area. His existence proves that the championship team can be without a super scorer, but cannot be without an iron-blooded blue-collar worker who is willing to do dirty work - this is the "No. 32 Spirit" that the Pacers should inherit.