Pacers possibly lose 2 starters for Game 3

INDIANAPOLIS -- Any hopes the Indiana Pacers had of getting through the playoffs relatively healthy vanished by the end of their Game 2 loss at New Jersey.\nThe Pacers enter Game 3 today with starters Peja Stojakovic and Stephen Jackson and reserve Jamaal Tinsley nursing injuries. The situation is all too familiar for a team that has used 32 different starting lineups this season while player after player has gone down.\nStojakovic had a nagging right knee injury that flared up less than an hour before Game 2, and the Pacers told him to sit out of their 90-75 loss. He was unsure whether he will play today.\n"It feels a little better," he said after watching Wednesday's practice. "The swelling is still there. Maybe with another 24 hours of rest and treatment, I'll be able to play."\nThe decision could be a major factor in the outcome of Game 3. Stojakovic averaged 19.5 points in 40 regular-season games with the Pacers and is their top perimeter player.\n"Offensively, he can shoot it from wherever on the floor and can stretch a defense," New Jersey guard Jason Kidd said. "He's a big threat. They missed him in Game 2, and we all expect him to play in Game 3."\nJackson, the Pacers' starter at shooting guard, bent his right pinkie finger back on his last play during Game 2. He couldn't shoot during practice on Wednesday, though an X-ray found no breaks.\n"We know he's going to play because he plays, but we're concerned about it because it is his shooting hand," said Indiana coach Rick Carlisle.\nTinsley, a backup point guard, was activated Tuesday after missing the previous four games with an Achilles' injury. He played Game 2 in pain and was limited during Wednesday's practice.\nThe injuries came after the Pacers snatched home court advantage away from the Nets with a 90-88 Game 1 win. But the injuries make the Pacers vulnerable to giving that advantage back.\nThe flip side of the situation is that the Pacers are used to the injury bug.\n"We've been faced with that challenge all year," said Jermaine O'Neal, who missed 31 games this season. "We've got to find ways to step up. Everybody's got to bring something else to the table at a higher level and pick up for some of the slack."\nCarlisle said Stojakovic will start if he can play Thursday, but he could struggle on defense against New Jersey's athletic lineup.\n"It helps to have him available because of how it changes things on the offensive end for us. They're going to have to guard him wherever he is on the floor," Carlisle said. "Defensively, it makes it hard on him because he's guarding guys who are quick. We're going to have to have a lot of help ready."\nStojakovic expects the knee pain to stay with him throughout the playoffs.\n"It'll take a little more time than a few days to get to 100 percent," he said. "At least if they (rest and treatment) give me a little more mobility and a little more comfort, I'm going to play through it."\nIf Stojakovic doesn't play, rookie Danny Granger will likely start for the second straight game. He had 11 points and three assists in Game 2, his 16th start of the season.\nNets forward Vince Carter said it doesn't matter what decision the Pacers make about Stojakovic.\n"I just know we played a good game defensively," he said. "Doesn't matter who's on the floor. We still have to play our team game on defense"