The New Jersey Nets are looking for some sort of urgency from their players when they travel to Indiana to take on the hot Pacers in the eastern conference. In the last three seasons Pacers have had the upper hand winning 3 of their last 4 meetings, although in all honesty the Nets have struggled against pretty much everyone, they have been without a few of their big players, but most importantly they have the need to find a way to win.

The New Jersey Nets are currently one of the last teams in the NBA, having won only 8 of their 29 games this season and although they pulled in a few big names in free agency this last offseason, they have not found their chemistry yet. Lead by all star point guard Deron Williams, who is averaging 20.9 points and 8.4 assists a game while the man everyone wants to hate for some odd reason, Mr. Kris Humphries is crashing the boards and pulling down 10.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks a game. They currently rank almost last in all major categories and they have a lot of rebuilding to get done before this ball club will be taken as serious as they want it to be.

The Indiana Pacers are quickly getting back to the old Reggie Miller days when they were one of the teams that all others feared playing against; they have gotten off to a great start this season going 17 and 8 over and have lost but 2 games over the last 8. Lead by Danny Granger who averages just over 18 points a game and rookie Roy Hibbert who is averaging 9.8 rebounds and close to two blocks a game. Ranking 5th overall in defense and 15th in offense they have really pulled together as a tight unit on the court and have been able to impress their loyal fans while turning a few heads at the same time.

This game will depend on the Nets ability to defend the rim and against the full court pressure; early mistakes in this one will determine the winner quickly and could get out of hand fast in one loosens up in the slightest amount. I like the Pacers in this game to defend their home court and use pressure defense to make the New Jersey point guard turn the ball over and create fast break opportunities for all.

THEDUCK