Basketball On The Internet.

SERIOUSLY now. Was there anyone in AmericanAirlines Arena - other than Pacers coach Frank Vogel - who didn't know LeBron James was going to take the match-winning shot for the Heat today?

And not once. But twice?

The King's crowning achievement was to drive the lane with 2.2 seconds left in overtime for a regulation lefty layup and a 103-102 Miami escape in Game 1 of the NBA's Eastern Conference Final against Indiana.

How badly this loss afflicts the Pacers over the rest of this journey will be interesting to see because for long stretches of this one, they had the contest on their own terms.

Fouls, turnovers, whistles and David West playing a great game - in regulation at least - had those predicting a Heat sweep sweating bullets.

James, who had early foul woes before completing the night with a triple double - 30 points, 10 assists, 10 boards - had some support from Dwyane Wade with 19 but it was Chris "Birdman" Anderson with 16 perfect points (7-of-7 from the floor, 2-of-2 at the stripe) who stepped up the most.

The finish of regulation was amazing enough with Paul George eventually responsible for two of the game's biggest plays and biggest blunders.

The first was a blunder when he passed the ball across court in a Pacers offence, believing he had an open teammate who was, in fact, a teammate standing off the court by the team bench.

(Chris Webber timeout moment anyone?)

George made amends when, down 89-92 with 0.7 left to play, he swished the most amazing three-pointer of the match.

It was a shot to bring you to your feet.

Then with 2.2 seconds left in overtime, Wade fouled out clipping George's elbow as he attempted a three.

Coolly, calmly, George strode to the free throw line, Indiana down 99-101, and went swish-swish-swish.

They had been ahead, 99-96 when Chris Bosh was fouled as he made a basket, converting the additional free throw to tie it back up.

West missed arguably his easiest shot of the night and Miami snaffled the rebound and took timeout.

Vogel then pulled the first boneheaded coaching move of the final seconds by sitting down massive centre Roy Hibbert.

Everyone knew James was going to get the ball for the tiebreaking basket so having a seven-footer planted under the hoop as a deterent might have made a little sense.

But Vogel sat Hibbert down and James drove straight to the basket for the 101-99 lead with 10.8 seconds remaining.

On Indiana's last possession, off a near inbounds turnover scramble that almost gave the Heat the ball, Wade fouled George outside the arc and he did the rest from the stripe.

When Miami took timeout - to draw up another play for James - Vogel AGAIN subbed off Hibbert even though he could easily have stood under the basket because with 2.2 seconds left, he could not even get a defensive three-second violation call.

The Heat ran two teammates off James near the elbow, George, defending him, didn't play him ballside, so as LeBron stepped up, he received the ball comfortably, turned and found an open lane to the basket.

My goodness. George played him from the wrong side, every other Indiana defender was out guarding guys who would have been no threat if James had to make the pass. It was 2.2 seconds, after all.

George even could have stepped off and given James the outside shot. Talk about committing suicide as a team.

James laid in the match-winner as the siren sounded, Hibbert on the Pacers' bench, shaking his head in abject dismay.

George paced the Pacers with 27 points, West with 26.

Game 2 in Miami is on Saturday, the series winner due to face the Western Conference champ which will come from San Antonio-Memphis, the Spurs ahead 2-0.

"We're a great team," LeBron said a few days ago.

Then he went out and won it all by himself. And only Frank Vogel didn't realise he would be the go-to guy. Twice.