Heat vs. Pacers Game 6: Indiana Needs Danny Granger to Avoid Elimination

The Indiana Pacers absolutely need Danny Granger to return for Game 6 if they hope to survive against the Miami Heat.

Well, unless his foot falls off, that is.

After spraining his ankle and missing most of the second half in the Pacers' embarrassing 115-83 loss on Tuesday night, Granger was seen in a walking boot after the game. When asked what it would take to keep him from playing in Game 6, he had the following to say (via Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports):

"

My foot to fall off. It's all up to me to at least try to play. This is the playoffs. I'll just take a bunch of pain medication.

"

Pacers head coach Frank Vogel was less sure (via Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star):

"

"I have no idea," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said when asked if he thinks he'll have Granger for Game 6. "We'll prepare a plan for him and we'll prepare for without him."

"

There you have it, folks.

The Pacers can't afford for his foot to fall off on either end of the court. When he first left the game in the second quarter, the Pacers only trailed 43-40. Miami promptly when on an 8-2 run to close the half.

He lasted for just over three minutes in the second half before leaving the game again, and the rest is history. After he was injured in the first half, Miami outscored the Pacers 72-43 the rest of the way.

Ouch.

Not only was Granger the team's leading scorer this season (18.7 points per game, though he's been inconsistent against Miami), but he's probably the team's best defensive option against LeBron James.

With or without Granger, the Pacers need to stop relying so heavily on trying to create shots off the dribble and settling for contested perimeter shots. They play right into Miami's hands when they don't pound the ball inside to Roy Hibbert and David West.

Sure, Granger demands a good deal of Miami's attention when he is on the court, but he should not be the focal point of Indiana's scoring attack in this series, not when it has the advantage inside and should be looking to slow the tempo of the game.

Instead, Granger should be the focal point of the team's pass-heavy attack that helped it win the first two games, when the Pacers took advantage of Miami's aggressive help defense and secured easy buckets for themselves.

The Pacers obviously aren't going to win without Granger, as they completely fell apart when he left the game. Maybe they are soft, as Larry Bird called them after the loss.

We'll find out in Game 6. Of course, they can be as hard as they want—if Granger isn't in the lineup, I'm not sure it will matter.

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