Indiana Pacers look to take advantage of short-handed Raptors
By Justin Byers
The Indiana Pacers take on the Toronto Raptors in the second leg of a back-to-back series tonight in Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Raptors come to Indiana short-handed but looking to prove a point.
The Indiana Pacers suffered a tough loss against the NBA’s best team, the Bucks, in Milwaukee on Sunday night.
After two impressive wins against the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings, the Pacers failed to play a complete four quarters against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks.
The lackadaisical performance resulted in a 117-89 loss.
In the second leg of a back-to-back, the Pacers have the opportunity to get back on track in the friendly confines of Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Tonight, the Toronto Raptors come to Indianapolis, short-handed, in an attempt to widen the margin within the Eastern Conference.
The Raptors currently hold a 21-8 record and stand in fourth place. The Pacers are currently sixth at 20-10.
The matchup presents the opportunity for the Pacers to take advantage of Toronto’s depleted roster and close the margin between the top teams in the conference.
Toronto travels to Indiana without the services of some of its best talent.
Tonight, the Raptors will be without their starting frontcourt in Marc Gasol and Pascal Siakam.
Both are out for an indefinite period:
The Raptors announce that, in addition to Marc Gasol being out indefinitely, as @wojespn reported, both Pascal Siakam (strained groin) and Norm Powell (left shoulder subluxation) are out indefinitely, too. Just brutal news for the Raptors, who have been injury-riddled all year.
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) December 20, 2019
The absence of Gasol and Siakam allows Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis to potentially thrive.
The duo of Turner and Sabonis has started to come together and tonight is an opportunity to build on what has already been established.
The Raptors will also be without Norman Powell, Matt Thomas, Stanley Johnson, and Dewan Hernandez. Toronto currently has a laundry list of injuries and the Pacers must take advantage.
Despite losing Kawhi Leonard this offseason, the Raptors have proved to be a formidable team.
With a unique mix of young and old talent, Toronto has the structure to contend. That has been solidified with the team’s ability to squeeze out wins without its best players. Even though the Raptors are short-handed, they are nothing to play with.
Last night, the Raptors completed a 30-point comeback against the Dallas Mavericks, the largest in franchise history. The Raptors defeated the Mavericks 110-107.
Toronto is capable, no matter who is in the lineup.
The Pacers will be challenged and will have to showcase some grit after the loss last night in Milwaukee. However, with the momentum the Pacers have established over the last several weeks, expect the team to come out firing on all cylinders.
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Tonight is a great test for both teams but luckily for the Pacers, they will have the support of the greatest fans in the NBA.