Indiana Pacers
Matchups for the Pacers-Heat series:
POINT GUARD: Mario Chalmers vs George Hill
The invisible matchup, because few people will look for or care about the point guards during this series.
Chalmers may still get the 'little brother' treatment from his Big 3 teammates but he's proven to be an asset on this team with three-peat aspirations. Chalmers is more than just a fourth or fifth scoring option, he can knock down a 3 as he had a pair of 2-of-3 shooting nights from beyond the arc against Brooklyn and is the team's all-time postseason leader with 112 3-pointers made. Also, Chalmers can share the ball and had a couple of seven-assist games against Brooklyn - who can forget his shot-fake pass to an open Ray Allen near the end of Game 5? Finally, he doesn't hurt his team, as he only has committed 10 turnovers through nine playoff games.
Hill, the overlooked one of the five starters, had a nice series against the Washington Wizards. Not only because he shot 46 percent and averaged 11.7 points, 3 assists and 3.8 rebounds, but Hill's defense on John Wall helped slow the Wizards' pace.
Advantage: Pacers
SHOOTING GUARD: Dwyane Wade vs Lance Stephenson
Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson receives his second technical foul of the game as Miami Heat guard Dwayne Wade gestures under the basket inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Wednesday, March 26, 2014, in Indianapolis. The Pacers won the game 84-83.(Photo: Brent Drinkut/The Star)
Wade did not play in the teams' final regular season matchup, so we haven't seen these rivals together since Stephenson got ejected in the fourth quarter of Indiana's 84-83 win over Miami on March 26. Just before the ejection, Wade could be seen smiling at Stephenson's over-the-top taunt and he may get the last laugh in this matchup.
Wade sat out the April 11 game, during his stretch of nine straight DNPs, due to knee problems. Yet since the start of the playoffs, he has played like the same explosive Wade. Against Brooklyn, Wade averaged 35 minutes on the floor, 18.2 points on 50-percent shooting, 4.2 assists and 3.2 rebounds. So it seems that Stephenson was going on old intel Saturday when he revealed to reporters his plan to wear down Wade this series.
'D Wade, I think his knee is kind of messed up, so I have to be extra aggressive, make him run,' Stephenson said. 'Tell coach to run 'floppy,' make him running around, make his knee flare up or something. Do anything as much as possible; make the games come easily for us.'
Stephenson had a nice bounce back, all-around performance in Game 6 in Washington (17 points, eight assists, five rebounds) and vows to come out aggressive against Miami. However, a fired-up Stephenson could land himself in the crosshairs of the referees and the Pacers certainly don't need that headache.
Advantage: Heat
SMALL FORWARD: LeBron James vs Paul George
George has aspirations in creating a legacy as one of the best two-way players in the game, so he lives for matchups like this. He will have the unenviable task of defending James, the best player, period, while also providing his 21.7 point-per-game playoff average on a nightly basis.
With each of the four regular-season games against Indiana, James turned into more of a scorer, shedding his facilitating ways to shoot 52 percent and average 28.8 points. In the playoffs, no team has truly tested the Heat and no player has slowed James, who is averaging 30 points, 7.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists.
Advantage: Heat
POWER FORWARD: Chris Bosh vs David West
Chris Bosh (left) and David West (right).(Photo: Photo illustration)
Even if the Heat starts Udonis Haslem at the center position, since Bosh has had trouble defending Roy Hibbert, there will be no break against West. Through the first few games, West will likely return to his role as the high-post entry passer and occasional elbow jump shooter. But expect him to take over when the Pacers absolutely need a win. West stepped up during both Game 6s of the previous playoff rounds and his 29-point performance on Thursday night led Indiana to the clinching win over Washington.
Miami can rip a page from the Atlanta playbook by using Bosh to stretch the floor. Bosh, an exceptional 3-point shooter when open, knocked down his long-distance shots at a 69.2 percent clip during the opening round, then helped the Heat win Game 4 in Brooklyn with a corner three with 57.3 seconds remaining in the game.
Advantage: Pacers
CENTER: Udonis Haslem vs Roy Hibbert
Last season in the Eastern Conference Finals, something clicked for the one called 'Big Dawg.' Hibbert dominated Bosh and averaged 22.1 points, 10.4 rebounds and shot 56 percent from the field. However, according to reports from Miami, it appears that the Heat will insert Haslem into the starting lineup to help neutralize Hibbert.
On April 11, Haslem, who gives up at least four inches to Hibbert, kept the 7-2 center from favorable post position. Hibbert did not attempt any of his seven shots against Haslem and did not make a shot until the second half. By that time the Heat had built a 23-point lead.
Haslem played only three minutes during the Brooklyn series and worked the back-up minutes against Charlotte. Though he may start at the center position, the Heat still have the bouncy Chris Andersen, and maybe even Greg Oden, to help in the Hibbert dilemma.
Advantage: Pacers
BENCH
If Luis Scola, Evan Turner, C.J. Watson and Ian Mahinmi can play close to half of the second and fourth quarters and give the starters some rest, then the Pacers can win this series. However, the bench unit did not accomplish that against Washington. The Pacers prevailed on the strength of their starters as key bench players Turner (1.2 points in 13 minutes) and Scola (4.2 points in 10.6 minutes) could not be relied on for long stretches of the game.
Conversely, the Heat can depend on a reserve player like Allen to close out games. Even so, Miami's lone loss in the playoffs happened when the Brooklyn bench outscored the Heat's. With all the minutes the starters play, it is unlikely for the Pacers bench to score lots of points, but they still have to figure out how to positively impact the game.
Advantage: Heat
Prediction: Don't expect any more soil-the-bed games from the Pacers. They've wanted this matchup all season long, and played for the sole purpose of having a potential Game 7 against the Heat on their home floor. The motivation to play hard should no longer be a problem. However, this series will come down to experience and talent. And who has more of that than the two-time defending champs?
Miami wins in 7 games.
Call Star reporter Candace Buckner at (317) 444-6121. Follow her on Twitter: @CandaceDBuckner.
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