The Eastern Conference finals series between the Miami Heat and the Indiana Pacers is expected to be a tough matchup between two strong teams and it should be intense after the two faced off last season in the playoffs and one of the biggest matchups in the series will be between LeBron James and Paul George.
James is coming into the series scoring over 25 points per game in the playoffs while George has under 20, but it will be up to the Pacers forward to defend James during the series to try and keep him in check. The series gets started on Wednesday night from Miami in American Airlines Arena and the Heat are going to try to avoid another first game loss of a series, which happened in the first round against the Chicago Bulls. The Heat won the next four games to take the series, which was similar to what happened last season when the Pacers took a 2-1 lead and then lost the next three games in a row.
George is the most athletic player for the Pacers and Indiana is riding high on confidence entering the series, as they went 2-1 against the Heat this season with two of those games being double digit wins at home. On thing that the Pacers need to improve on is their play on the road and winning in Miami is necessary for the team to have a chance at winning the series. Last season George was excellent for the Pacers while averaging 18 points and seven rebounds in the series against the Heat.
The Pacers are one of the best defensive teams in the league and George was tasked to shut down Carmelo Anthony, who scored in bunches but when it came to the key moments George was able to get stops. Anthony scored 39 points in Game 6, but it was the block by Roy Hibbert that turned the game around. George held Anthony to just four points in the fourth quarter and was a key factor in rallying from behind at the end.
The Pacers beat the Heat twice at home during the team before the Heat went on their 27-game winning streak, while Miami defeated Indiana 105-91 in the last game which saw just 10 points from George. The Heat are currently on a 45-3 streak in the last 48 games and are playing at a championship level, with Wade averaging over 20 points and Chris Bosh adding over 16 per game, while the bench has also been very solid. The Heat have gotten better and better each season since James signed and this is the best stretch that the team has had during his three seasons.
