The latest episode in the rivalry between the Miami Heat and the Indiana Pacers saw the former taking Game 1 of these teams’ fierce first-round series. The series is far from over, though, as the Pacers look to even things up in Game 2 on Thursday. Check out our preview of this game below.
The Heat are not all about just one player, with many players contributing to their success this season, but in Game 1 of their first-round series against the Pacers, Jimmy Butler rose to the occasion and showed why he is the team’s alpha male. Butler scored 28 points to with four assists, four steals, and two blocks, while also hitting two clutch 3-pointers to lead Miami to a 113-101 win. Goran Dragic played Robin to Butler’s Batman and poured in 24 points. With Butler also setting the tone on defense, Miami held Myles Turner to only nine points. It’s key for the Heat to take away Turner’s production to keep Indiana’s source of points limited. Butler is primarily assigned to Bubble star TJ Warren, which is a tough assignment, but the Heat swingman always finds ways to impact his team’s defense outside of his duties on the perimeter by forcing turnovers. Indiana had 15 turnovers to just nine by Miami in Game 1.
Warren has emerged as the Pacers’ best player down in Orlando, and in Game 1, he also seemed to have finally shrugged his struggles against the Heat. Warren had a hard time dealing with Miami in the regular season in which he averaged just 10.3 points on 35.5 percent shooting from the field against the Heat. But in Game 1, Warren put all those behind him and scored 22 points on 9-of-18 shooting from the floor. He also had four steals. Malcolm Brogdon also had 22 points, but had a colder efficiency, making only 6 of his 18 shots. The Pacers lacked a third wheel on offense, which could have been Victor Oladipo, but the former Indiana Hoosier left the game before halftime because of an eye issue. However, after a visit to the NBA’s on-campus clinic, it appears that he’ll be okay to play in Game 2 after seeing action for only nine minutes on Tuesday. If the Pacers can get Oladipo to play more minutes and see improved production from Turner, they’ll be in a better position to win this Thursday.
