Pacers’ bench needs to step up
TYLER SMITH
ISL Editor
INDIANAPOLIS — For the 13th consecutive game played between these two teams, the Pacers and Heat have gone back and forth with wins. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade came up big in the final quarter like champions do, and Miami prevailed 87-83 to tie the series 1-1 on Tuesday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
If this trend of neither team losing two in a row continues, the Pacers will be in good shape. Even so, they let a huge opportunity go to waste. The Pacers led 75-72 with about 5 minutes left in the game. The offense reverted back to non-existent mode down the stretch, and the Heat turned it up a notch for the win. Miami went on a 10-0 run and never looked back.
One thing has been clear to me for two seasons: The Pacers’ starters are simply better than the Heat starters. When playing starters vs. starters, the Pacers have been consistently on the plus side of the plus/minus splits. That was the case once again in Game 2. James was the only Heat starter to be in the positive (plus-4), and Paul George was the only Pacer starter to be in the negative (just minus-1).
Compare those numbers with the bench play: Pacers reserves were minus-13, minus-8, minus-6, and minus-4, respectively. The Heat bench players were plus-25, plus-16, plus-14 and plus-4.
In my series preview, I stated that the role players for Miami were a bigger key than James and Wade. Those guys are going to get their monster numbers. It’s when Miami’s role players are hitting shots that they become difficult to beat. They didn’t make shots in the Game 1 loss, and they made shots in the Game 2 win. Simple as that.
For the Pacers to win this series, they need something, anything from guys like Luis Scola and C.J. Watson. Larry Bird knows the Pacers probably lost the series last year, not because of the starters, but because of the poor bench play. He brought some new bench players to the mix to try and get the Pacers over the hump. Aside from Watson having a solid Game 1, the bench has once again struggled. And it might cost the Pacers their season unless they step up.
Especially when David West leaves with foul trouble, the Pacers need Scola to come in and not have such a massive drop-off in production. Scola was 1-of-6 in Game 2, after going just 1-of-3 in Game 1. He has only made more than two shots in four of the 14 Pacers playoff games. This is not what Larry Bird envisioned when bringing Scola here.
Lance Stephenson has been playing the best basketball of his career in this series. He had 25 points, six rebounds and seven assists. But because of the poor bench play, Stephenson was forced to play more minutes than James. He ran out of gas, and only scored two of his points in the final quarter.
“However the game presents itself, I just try to take advantage of it,” James said after the win. “I needed to do something in the fourth. I was able to get some good looks for guys in the third quarter but I needed to make a few buckets to help us in the fourth quarter and I was able to come through for us.”
George and West were a combined 9-of-32 in this game. Some will argue that their poor shooting combined with James and Wade playing well is what cost the Pacers the game. I would still argue that the bench play is what did it. The Pacers had a golden opportunity to win despite the poor shooting night from their go-to players. When James gets help and doesn’t have to go to work until the fourth quarter, Miami will always be in good shape.
The Pacers’ success on the road this postseason will surely give them the confidence to go down to Miami and win a game. Knowing how Miami plays after a loss makes Saturday’s Game 3 critical for the Pacers. A back-and-forth series will suit the Pacers just fine since they grabbed the first one. At the same time, when you have an opportunity to win any game against the Heat, you have to capitalize.
This has the makings of a deep series, and one for the ages. For that to be possible, “Blue Collar” will need to go to work in South Beach and bring this thing back home tied 2-2. And for the sake of the season, that includes the bench.
Follow Tyler Smith on Twitter: @sports_tys_20
