The Miami Heat received an unexpected rest day ahead of their matchup against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday in Indianapolis.
Miami was scheduled to play the host Chicago Bulls on Thursday, but the game was postponed due to moisture and slick conditions on the United Center floor.
“We always want to try to go,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “The players were complaining about it on both sides. So staff, we all went out there and pretty much immediately we felt that it wasn’t playable.”
As a result, the Heat will take the floor Saturday for the first time since losing 122-94 to the host Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday. The loss was Miami’s most lopsided of the season.
The Heat will face an Indiana team that snapped a 13-game losing streak with a 114-112 road win over the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday.
The victory marked Pacers’ coach Rick Carlisle 1,000th career win. He is 1,000-891 in 24 NBA seasons.
“He’s a guy who has always empowered his assistant coaches and is trying to learn,” Indiana guard T.J. McConnell said. “When you put all that together, it turns into what he’s built here. It’s a pretty incredible thing.”
Pascal Siakam helped Carlisle secure his signature victory with 30 points and 14 rebounds against the Hornets.
Siakam leads the Pacers in scoring at 23.9 points per game and has scored at least 20 points in 22 of his last 26 games. His layup with 11.5 seconds left proved to be the difference on Thursday.
“Pascal Siakam is one of the favorite players I’ve ever been around at any level,” Carlisle said. “He’s just amazing. He put his stamp on (Thursday’s) game with his will. The play that he made at the end to make the shot to put us up one was an amazing play.”
Indiana is looking to avenge a 142-116 loss to Miami on Dec. 27, when the Heat outscored the Pacers 44-22 in the final quarter.
Guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. is expected to be available for Saturday’s contest after missing the past two games with a sprained ankle. Jaquez scored 28 points against the Pacers last month.
Miami guard Tyler Herro returned to the lineup in Tuesday’s loss to Minnesota after missing 11 games due to a right toe injury. He had 17 points, nine rebounds and three assists in 29 minutes off the bench.
Herro was penciled into the starting lineup for Thursday’s game against Chicago prior to the postponement.
Herro is expected to start against Indiana while center Kel’el Ware comes off the bench. Ware started 11 games while Herro was sidelined and had 11 rebounds in the loss to the Timberwolves.
Spoelstra said Herro’s return provides an immediate boost for the entire lineup.
“We need his talent. We need his edginess. We need his swag,” Spoelstra said. “We need all of it right now, and I’m just excited that we have him back in the mix.”
Miami could also use a spark from forward Bam Adebayo, who was held to seven points on 3-of-11 shooting in Tuesday’s loss to Minnesota. He is averaging 11.5 points on 34.6 percent shooting over his last four games.
–Field Level Media
