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The Indiana Pacers pick up preseason play in the Philippines when they face the Houston Rockets in Manila for a 7:30 am tip on Thursday morning.
The Rockets expect to rise among the title contenders this year after adding dynamic center Dwight Howard in the offseason to go along with potent scoring guard, James Harden. The Rockets will have no problem matching the Pacers size with 7-foot power forward Donatas Motiejunas and 6'9 Chanlder Parsons at small forward. The Pacers are plenty stout enough to handle that length though and the experience David West delivers can cut any PF down to size.
Regular season matchups between Paul George and James Harden have been heavily favored PG. Last season in two games against the Pacers, Harden needed 24 shots to score 22 points and 19 shots to score 17 points. The Pacers won both games and Harden struggled to shake the shadow that was PG. But alas, we're still in preseason action and with the highly engaged crowd in Manila, the game will be more of a showcase as both teams prepare for the regular season.
For more on the Rockets, check out The Dream Shake. Also, leave your thoughts and observations on the game in the comments.