The Indiana Pacers play host to the Toronto Raptors at Banker's Life Fieldhouse on Wednesday.

The Raptors (36-13) are expected to be without Kawhi Leonard for this game, as this will mark his fourth-straight absence due to maintenance issues. That's a bizarre designation for a superstar player and it's even more discouraging considering the fact that he hasn't even played both ends of a back-to-back set yet this season. Playing it carefully with your superstar is not the worst idea though, as this team is well on its way to finishing with a top-two spot in the east. What makes it even more amazing is the fact that Toronto has won all three of those games without him, as they come into this matchup winning eight of their last nine games in total. This is actually one of the only clubs in the NBA who ranks top-10 in both points scored and points allowed, as that's obviously a recipe for success.

The Pacers (31-15) have quietly turned into one of the best teams in the league this season, as they come into this matchup winning 18 of their last 23 games. There's one major reason why, as this defense continues to stifle their opponents. In fact, the Pacers allow the fewest points in the NBA this season and have been even better at home. What makes this team so dangerous is just how many weapons they possess, as anyone on this roster can go off on any given night. Victor Oladipo is obviously a stud but players like Darren Collison and Myles Turner are plenty capable too. Role players like Thaddeus Young and Bojan Bogdanovic complement those guys perfectly and it's made this team one of the most dangerous in the NBA.

Toronto has dominated this series over recent years, winning five straight and nine of their last 11 games over Indiana. With that said, the two meetings this season were both played north of the border, as Indiana is 17-6 at home this year.