I was feeling a bit uninspired for today's article so I decided to look at the game preview on NBA.com to see what others are saying. Turns out I'm not the only one without something interesting to say. The writer of that piece framed tonight's game through the lens of the looming In-Season Tournament matchup against the Celtics.

As well as the Indiana Pacers have played in the NBA in-season tournament, the last thing they want to do is stumble into the East quarterfinals.

Losers of three of their past four games, the Pacers face the Miami Heat for the second time in as many games on Saturday before hosting the Boston Celtics in the first bracket game of the in-season tournament on Monday. Indiana finished 4-0 in tournament group play.

It's hard not the peek past this game and start thinking about Monday night. After all, Tyrese Haliburton is not expected to play tonight and we all know what happened last time he sat out (we lost by 51).

Many drums have suffered stinging beatings during the Pacers' recent skid. Some have vociferously demanded a trade for a win now piece like Pascal Siakam or Mikal Bridges. Others have gone the opposite direction in calling for more playing time for recent draft picks. Regardless of your preferred prescription, the note behind the note is that Pacers fans want a shake up.

While a trade is unlikely to happen in the next few hours, tonight could very well present a low stakes opportunity to let Jarace Walker, Ben Sheppard, and (in a different sense) Benn Mathurin off the leash.

Having said that, I won't hold my breath.

Injuries

Other than Tyrese, the only unavailable Pacer is Jalen Smith, who did not travel with the team to Miami.

For the Heat, Bam Adebayo will not play after injuring his hip on Thursday.

How to Watch

Tipoff is at 8:00 PM ET.

TV: Bally Sports Indiana, NBA League Pass

Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan

See ya in the comments!

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