Eastern Conference Finals Preview

The Indiana Pacers will take on the Miami Heat in Miami for game one of the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pacers won the season series 2-1, winning both of the games at home. They can sweep Miami at home, but they need to steal at least one in Miami. They can cause the Heat some problems, especially down low with David West and Roy Hibbert. Look for Miami to storm out of the gate in order to steal the Pacers spirit.

George Hill gets the luxury of playing against Mario Chalmers. Hill should be able to have his way against him on offense. On defense. Hill needs to stick with Chalmers at all times to make sure he does not get and open three because he will knock them down. Chalmers needs to keep doing what he has been doing, which is fitting in with the big three and choosing his spots correctly.

Lance Stevenson is a good defender and he will most likely face off against Dwyane Wade. Stevenson had a great game 6 against the Knicks in which he scored 25 points. He wont do that every game though. He is not an offensive player. He is faced with a much larger task this series, guarding Dwayne Wade. That is not as daunting of a task as it has been in years past. Wade is injured and has only scored 13 PPG in the playoffs. He is not as mobile, but he still has the potential to go off in any game so Stevenson needs to keep him in check. Wade needs to focus on getting healthy, while finding a new role on this team since he is clearly not the same player anymore. Even though he is not scoring much, he can still make an impact elsewhere.

Lebron James will have to take over this series. He is the best player in the game right now and he needs to show it to the Pacers. He will do a little bit of everything like he normally does, but will likely have to step up his scoring in order for the Heat to have success. He will be guarded by Paul George who did a great job on Carmelo Anthony. He is long player who could give Lebron some problems. He needs to stand his ground and make him shoot jumpers. George will be a tough player for Lebron to guard too. He can hit the jumpers or drive in at will. He is very athletic and quick and he can use that to get around James. They are both really good rebounders too. They will have to keep each other off of the boards, especially on the offensive end.

Udonis Haslem has been starting for the Heat, but I see no way in which he can handle David West. West is too good on the offensive end for Haslem to guard him. Haslem especially needs to keep him off the boards. West does not have to worry much about Haslem on the offensive end except for the fact that Haslem has a nice mid range jump shot.

Chris Bosh will have to deal with Roy Hibbert. Hibbert is much bigger than Bosh which will cause him problems. Hibbert is also a much better rebounder than Bosh. However, since Bosh can stretch the floor, he could bring Hibbert out of the paint which minimizes his shot blocking presence. I wouldn't be surprised if Frank Vogel decides to put David West on Bosh in order to keep Hibbert in the paint.

The Pacers have a real shot a winning this series. If Paul George can take away the lane for James and make him shoot jumpers, the Heat will be in major trouble. If Hibbert is able to stay in the lane and be a shot blocking presence that would further reduce the Heat's ability to drive into the lane. I think David West will have a huge series since there is no one on the Heat who could guard him. I have the Pacers winning this series in 6 games.