Pacers' West out again Wednesday, may not return this week

The Indiana Pacers will continue to operate shorthanded this week, with no clear end to their woes in sight.

With a handful of players injured, it's the absence of David West that stands out the most. West is dealing with a sprained right ankle he suffered on Oct. 19, with a week-by-week time table that keeps getting extended indefinitely.

West has been ruled out of Wednesday's game against the Miami Heat and isn't expected back at any point this week. The Pacers play again Friday and Saturday and are then off until Wednesday, so West could be looking at another week of recovery time, at least.

Presumed to be their top scoring option with Paul George out for the season, the Pacers are missing West's 14 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists from a season ago. The offense has unexpectedly been good enough to rank 24th in the league, but their post scoring is tenuous.

Luis Scola has been starting in West's place, averaging seven points and 7.6 rebounds, while Damjan Rudez and Chris Copeland have also seen additional run as smaller fours. That arrangement should continue this week, though Copeland now figures to be the team's starting small forward for a while.