Pacers-Heat series preview
TYLER SMITH
ISL Correspondent
This is what we’ve been waiting for. All season long, it seemed like an inevitable matchup: the Indiana Pacers and the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals. Indiana sure made things interesting on their path to this point, but none of it matters anymore.
Throw records, statistics and history out the window. It’s now a seven-game season, with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line.
The Heat have won back-to-back championships and have taken out the Pacers in each of those seasons. The blue and gold are once again the team standing between Miami and a fourth consecutive trip to the NBA Finals.
Keys to the Series:
Winning Game 1: Both teams are an astounding 10-0 in their last 10 playoff games coming off a loss. If those numbers hold up, that means the Game 1 winner would go on to win the series. Beating either team two games in a row in a series has been nearly impossible in the last few seasons. The Pacers felt like they gave away Game 1 last year in Miami and ended up losing in Game 7. This year, the Pacers will have a lot of pressure to win Game 1. They’ve dropped Game 1 in each of the first two rounds. Only this time, it’s the Miami Heat standing in the way of a series comeback.
The Pacers’ Bigs: No more small-ball talk. The clear advantage the Pacers have on Miami are their bigs: Roy Hibbert and David West. Hibbert played the series of his life last year in the conference finals, averaging 22.1 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. When he’s playing well, the Heat simply have no match for him down low. Hibbert’s defense is also needed to help limit the points in the paint that Miami typically gets. Several fans would ask me: “Even if they get past the Hawks, do you really think they’ll be any match for the Heat?” My answer: Of course, because they match up well. Hibbert and West are the reasons. A steady dose of these guys down low, and the Pacers should make this a very tough series.
Miami’s Role Players: LeBron James is going to get his monster numbers. There’s not much the Pacers can do about it, even with a very good defender in Paul George. James is the best player on the planet, and he’s going to get his. Miami’s role players are one of the keys to their success. If James has to do it all, the Pacers will be in good shape. If Mario Chalmers, Chris Bosh, Ray Allen and Norris Cole are making shots, Miami is extremely difficult to beat. If I’m Indiana, my game plan is to make life as difficult as possible for the 3-point shooters.
The Stephenson/Wade Matchup: This one will be fun to watch and might end up being the key to the entire series. Will Dwyane Wade’s knees hold up for seven games (or only in the must-win games like last year)? Will the good version of Lance Stephenson show up for most of the series? If so, the Pacers become just as dangerous as the Heat. There’s no love lost between these two players — or teams for that matter. This matchup will just be one of the many storylines to pay close attention to.
The Pacers need to find the home magic that they once possessed this season. They’ve already dropped four games at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in these playoffs. To win this series, they will need to win three of the four games at home.
The national media has already written the Pacers off, based on their play against the Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards. Stephen A. Smith was even quoted as saying, “There’s no way in (heck) the Pacers are taking down the Miami Heat.” Shaquille O’Neal also jumped in: “I think the Heat will blow them out.” Skip Bayless added: “The Wizards and Pacers are taking turns embarrassing each other. The winner will get embarrassed by the Heat.”
I’m going to disagree with all three. If the Pacers play focused, with energy and with the defensive intensity they typically show, this could be another series for the ages.
Prediction
Even though this series is a fresh start, it’s still hard to completely trust the Pacers enough to take down Miami. They will definitely have a shot, and I will not be surprised if they take Miami down. Even so, my official pick: Heat in seven.
Get ready for two weeks of highly entertaining basketball, and another shot for the Pacers to reach the NBA Finals.
Follow Tyler on Twitter: @sports_tys_20
