The Indiana Pacers and the Miami Heat are facing off on Wednesday in a premier NBA game on ESPN and the matchup will be going down at 7:00 pm and puts the top teams in the eastern conference against each other and will be going down at AmericanAirlines Arena and streaming online from the WatchESPN website.
The Pacers got the best of Miami when they played in Indiana and now the teams will face off in South Florida and it comes after the Pacers dropped just their fourth game of the season and they are about to have a tough stretch, as they play against the Houston Rockets on Friday night. LeBron James is questionable with an ankle issue and while there is a chance he will miss the game on Wednesday, as long as he can play he likely will suit up and that would be a huge loss for Miami, as they are banged up already. The team has rebounded from a slow start and now they are just two games behind Indiana in the east and that could be a huge win for the team, as the Pacers desperately want home court over the Heat in the playoffs.
Last season the Pacers lost the eastern conference finals to the Heat in seven games and some could argue that if Game 7 was in Indiana, the outcome may have been different. Miami understands how important home court advantage is in the playoffs and this would be a massive win for the team in the long run. Miami comes into the matchup against the Pacers after a blowout win at home against the Utah Jazz and James was the leader in the game in scoring, rebounding and dimes, as he had 30 points, nine rebounds and nine assists and after playing against the Pacers, the team has the Sacramento Kings to deal with as well.
Miami comes into the game well balanced and they rank sixth in the league in scoring with over 100 points per game and they are third in assists and sixth in defense as well with 96 points allowed and they will have a tough test with the Pacers. Indiana is the best team in the NBA right now and with players like Paul George, Roy Hibbert and David West, Miami could be very outmatched without LeBron in the lineup.
The Pacers come into the game after losing to the Detroit Pistons at home and after playing against Miami they will return to Bankers Life Fieldhouse to play against the Rockets and Dwight Howard. The team currently ranks first in points allowed this season with 90 per contest and the team is averaging nearly 100 points per game. The team ranks 10th in rebounding and 17th in assists and Paul George has been fantastic once again while leading the team in scoring. Miami plays against the Pacers and Kings before a matchup with the Hawks and then on Christmas Day they will play against the Los Angeles Lakers in a game on ABC before playing the Kings and Blazers on a west coast road trip.
The game on Wednesday night tips off at 7 pm and will be on ESPN and streaming from the WatchESPN website.