NBA Playoffs 2014: Greg Oden active for Miami Heat for game three

As they try to account for the size that the Indiana Pacers tout down in the low post, the Miami Heat will have another option at their disposal. Center Greg Oden is active and available for game three.

Oden’s contributions were limited this season as he dealt with a back injury. In 23 games he averaged 2.9 points per game. If he does play for Miami they presumably will not be asking him to play a bunch of minutes; they would just need productive and efficient minutes against the streaky and unpredictable Roy Hibbert.

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Chris Andersen is coming off a strong game two showing in which he grabbed 12 rebounds off the bench. Most of the pressure will fall on the Birdman to do the dirty work down in the post. As for Hibbert, he had 12 points and 13 rebounds in that game. There is also the challenge of dealing with David West and his killer mid-range game.

How Oden will be deployed, if at all, is a big unknown at this point. If nothing else it gives Frank Vogel and the Pacers something else to think about, even if it is for a limited number of minutes in the game. That in itself might make it worth it to have the big man active for a key game three.