Eastern Conference Playoffs Preview- Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Indiana Pacers

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Feb 8, 2017; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James (23) is guarded by Indiana Pacers forward Paul George (13) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Cleveland defeated Indiana 132-117. Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

Key Positional Match-up

The obvious match-up to watch is between the superstars in LeBron James and Paul George. As mentioned earlier, these two have had their fair share of battles in the past that have always gone down to the wire statistically. The best part about this matchup is that these two stars actually guard each other and look forward to the challenge, especially late in games.

In their last regular season meeting, each player drew the defensive assignment of guarding the other early in the game to prevent their opponent from getting too hot and taking the game over. This happened:

Paul George finished this game with 43 points, nine rebounds, nine assists, and three steals in a herculean effort to try and will his team to a win. LeBron James registered a triple-double with 41 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists and had a bit more help than George had. The Cavaliers had 6 players score over 10 points with the Big 3 all scoring 20 points or more.

Paul George will definitely take this matchup personally and we should see his best basketball on full display, but I give the edge in this match-up to the “King” LeBron James. How could you not?

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