NBA
Miami Heat vs Indiana Pacers Preview: Odds, Tips and Prediction
The Miami Heat will compete against the Indiana Pacers on January 2nd at the Kaseya Center.
Terry Rozier//Getty Images
The Miami Heat will compete against the Indiana Pacers on January 2nd at the Kaseya Center. Both teams are placed seventh and eighth in the Eastern Conference classification list, and this encounter should provide spectacular entertainment for the fans.
SportsBoom has covered all necessary information regarding these two teams, providing a preview with all the essential details. This article discusses both teams’ key players and previous head-to-head records, and we disclose our top-value bets for the fixture itself.
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Match Details
Miami Heat vs Indiana Pacers Kaseya Center, Miami, Florida
Date: Thursday 2nd January 2025
Start time: 7:30 pm local time (12:30 am BST)
Last meeting: November 17, 2024, Indiana Pacers 119-110 Miami Heat
Pre-Game Odds and Win Probability
Miami Heat: 1/2 (1.50) – 67%
Indiana Pacers: 17/10 (2.70) – 37%
Forecast Odds – Betting available on Stake closer to event
Head-to-Head Record
Throughout NBA history, the Miami Heat and the Indiana Pacers have played against each other 132 times in the regular season. Despite being the more successful team with three NBA Championships, the Heat have an inferior record of 57 wins. The Pacers, however, have produced a more favourable 75 total wins.
With the superior record in their favour, the Pacers have won three of their last five meetings against the Heat. Considering how close the head-to-head is, all five previous encounters are played to an exceptional standard. Will we see another game that reaches these levels of free-flowing, fluid, attacking basketball?
Last Five Matches
| Season | Date | Result |
| 2024/25 Season | November 17, 2024 | Indiana Pacers 119-110 Miami Heat |
| 2024/25 Season | November 15, 2024 | Miami Heat 124-111 Miami Heat |
| 2023/24 Season | April 7, 2024 | Indiana Pacers 117-115 Miami Heat |
| 2023/24 Season | December 2, 2023 | Indiana Pacers 144-129 Miami Heat |
| 2023/24 Season | November 30, 2023 | Miami Heat 142-132 Indiana Pacers |
How is the season so far for both teams?
Indiana Pacers
- Record: 16-18
- Home Form: 8-6
- Road Form: 8-12
The Indiana Pacers continue their away form after posting wins against the Sacramento Kings, Golden State Warriors, and Boston Celtics and, as such, find themselves eighth seed in the East. With their road form improving, Indiana is slowly but surely closing in on 0.500 territory.
Power forward star Pascal Siakam has slightly regressed in form from previous years with the Pacers and his last team, the Toronto Raptors, but he is their leader in points per game and rebounds. Currently, the 30-year-old is posting an average of 19.8 points per game, his first season below 20 points average as a starter since the 2018/19 NBA season. In addition, he is posting 7.2 rebounds per game, most of which have come out of possession in defensive situations.
Their primary provider in offense, Tyrese Haliburton, is performing slightly below his true capabilities after posting 10+ assists per game in his last two seasons with the Pacers. His 2024/25 stats show he is producing an output of 8.7 per game, but this is enough to show anyone within the league that he is still a significant threat, considering this puts him fifth overall in the NBA.
Miami Heat
- Record: 16-14
- Home Form: 9-5
- Road Form: 7-9
Only one place above the Pacers is seventh seed Miami Heat, who have a 16-14 record after their first 30 games this season. Their better form at home puts them above 0.500, with the Florida-based team completing a four-game winning stretch to boast this positive record. Their form on the road remains mixed, considering the organization has yet to win back-to-back away games since the start of the season.
Point guard Tyler Herro has improved his shooting efficiency in his sixth season with the Heat, as the 24-year-old reaches 24.0 points-per-game territory for the first time in his career. His previous record arrived last season with 20.8 points, but he is placed 18th overall in most points per game and has an impressive ceiling. He now averages 24-5-5 as his stat line and is a crucial part of the Heats’ starting five roster.
With Herro producing his record-best numbers, Miami’s center Bam Adebayo consistently helps on the other side of the court by reclaiming possession from the opposition. He is averaging 9.9 rebounds per game, with 7.5 of those on average occurring in defensive situations and is closing in on the top 15 spots in the entire league. Adebayo’s nine rebounds per game have been a regular feature since his third season, and he looks in prime position to maintain these figures for the rest of this season, too.
Value Bets
Tyrese Haliburton: Over 7 Assists: Our first value bet goes to one of the league’s most prominent assisters, Tyrese Haliburton. A remarkable statistic is that he has posted at least seven assists in his last ten games for the Pacers and his previous six games against the Heat, too. All evidence points to this continued trend for this exciting matchup in Florida.
Tyler Herro: Over 20 Points: Historically, Tyler Herro has scored an average of 19.3 points per game against the Pacers. This is slightly below SportsBoom’s estimated prediction, but he has raised his game in the league this season. He has scored over 20 points in six of his last eight meetings against the Pacers. In his two recent games in November earlier this season, the shooting guard produced 28 and 20 points, respectively.
Prediction: Miami Heat to Win
While the Indiana Pacers hold a slight advantage in the head-to-head records due to the team posting three wins in the previous five, SportsBoom predicts the Miami Heat to prevail. This fixture should continue the trend of seeing both teams playing attacking and fluid-flowing basketball, which could be a fascinating watch to the neutral. Combined with Jimmy Butler, Herro and Adebayo could be too much, and the trio will collectively bring the heat on their home patch.
Henry Cheal is a versatile freelance sports journalist with extensive experience in the industry. Henry has previously worked at the 2024 World Snooker Championship and earned a Multimedia Sports Journalism degree from UCFB in 2023.
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