Miami Heat Cannot Underestimate Pacers
Heat Cannot Afford To Underestimate Pacers Heading In To East Finals
The Miami Heat have been the best team in the NBA all season. If they are going to have a chance to repeat as NBA champions, they will have to be the best team in a best-of-seven series against the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Heat have the pure skill, experience, and depth to get back to the big stage and potentially repeat as NBA champions, but it won’t be easy against a tough opponent that will make them work hard for every win. Miami is the favorite to win it all this season, but it can’t afford to underestimate what the Pacers bring to the table.
Indiana is a tough, physical sports team that will use its size and strength to try and bully the Heat. Paul George has emerged as one of the top wings in the conference, and his ability to both score and defend against the opposition’s best player was a major asset in the Pacers’ series against Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks. Indiana has some solid role players that have a clearly defined role in David West and George Hill, and they have one of the top big men in the conference in Roy Hibbert. Hibbert has really emerged this postseason and will be a force inside that Miami does not have the personnel to match up against, so limiting his production and finding ways to match it in other ways will be crucial to winning this sports series.
That said, the Heat have the much stronger superstar talent, and it’s no secret that Lebron James will be leading the way once again. Lebron transformed his game in last year’s conference finals against Indiana, and his ability to dominate in the low post and free up space for his teammates is a luxury the Pacers don’t have. Lebron will be part of the group that tries to limit what Hibbert does, but that is also where Chris Bosh will play a big role. Miami was struggling against Indiana a year ago before going small, and the team has played the same style of game ever since. Dwyane Wade has been bothered by a knee injury all season, but if he is healthy it will provide the offense with a major spark other than Lebron.
There isn’t a single basketball expert that disagrees with the idea that the Heat have the stronger roster heading in to this series, and that is why they are the favorites to reach the NBA Finals. However, the Pacers have several weapons that can step up and give them a chance in this series, and it begins with the big man in Hibbert. The Eastern Conference Finals are Miami’s to lose, but they cannot afford to underestimate what Indiana brings to the table and how dangerous of a team they can be.
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