The Pacers have their backs against the wall, and all eyes are on how they will handle Tyrese Haliburton’s absence.

The star point left Game 2 with a hamstring injury that has hampered him for months now and is expected to miss Saturday night’s game. 

But even with Haliburton on the court this postseason, Indiana’s offense has largely run through Pascal Siakam. 

Siakam leads all Pacers starters in Usage Rate (25.2 percent) during their playoff run, averaging 21.7 points per game. 

Despite being in an 0-2 hole, Siakam has cooked a stout Celtics defense through two games, averaging 26 points on 62.5 percent shooting while going 2-for-4 from deep. 

In Game 2, Siakam dropped 28 points in just 31 minutes before exiting with 9:25 left and not returning to the floor. 

Returning to Indiana with the series on the line, Siakam should again play big minutes. 

The Celtics are currently favored by seven points, which is a slightly tighter spread than what we saw in the first two games in Boston, suggesting that we could see a closer contest than we did in Game 2. 

With Haliburton out, Siakam’s points total is sitting at 23.5 at most major sportsbooks, which is a number he’s hovered around since early in the series against the Knicks. 

Siakam has eclipsed 23.5 in four of his last seven playoff games, falling short by a few points in two of those games. 

All three games he fell short of 23.5 points were blowouts where Siakam left early.

Bet on Siakam to lead the scoring attack for a desperate Pacers team again.

The play: Pascal Siakam over 23.5 points (-105, BetMGM Sportsbook)