The Miami Heat were down eight points entering the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the NBA Finals. They still managed to live another day and beat the Denver Nuggets by 3 points.
The series will now head to South Beach for Games 3 and 4, and the Heat will most likely get sharpshooting guard Tyler Herro back on the floor for those two games.
Once again, however, the game plan will focus on trying to contain Nikola Jokic, arguably the best offensive force and most unstoppable player in the Association right now.
Erik Spoelstra Shuts Down Narrative Around Nikola Jokic
That’s why Heat coach Erik Spoelstra ripped a member of the media when asked whether they tried to make him ‘be a scorer and not a passer,’ as they held him to just four assists on the night:
“That’s ridiculous,” Spoelstra said postgame. “That’s the untrained eye that says something like that. This guy is an incredible player. Twice in two seasons he’s been the best player on this planet. You can’t just say, ‘Oh, make him a scorer.’ That’s not how they play. They have so many different actions that just get you compromised. We have to focus on what we do. We try to do things the hard way, and he requires you to do many things the hard way. He has our full respect.”
“That’s ridiculous. That’s just… that’s the untrained eye saying something like that. This guy is an incredible player… You can’t just say, ‘oh let’s make him a scorer.’” Erik Spoelstra on making Nikola Jokic a scorer or a passer. (via @TomerAzarly)
Spoelstra Praises Bam Adebayo
The Heat coach also praised Bam Adebayo for all the little things he’s had to do throughout the first two games of the series. And while Jokic still put up 41 points on him, he did make some huge plays down the stretch:
“Bam, we just can’t say enough of how difficult his responsibilities are in this series,” Spoelstra said. “To take arguably the toughest cover in the league for all the myriad of reasons that I don’t need to get into, and then he has to shoulder a big offensive role for us, as well. So it’s not like he can just stand and rest on the offensive side, and yes, he has to play 40-plus minutes, as well.”
It’s hard to argue that the Heat are the less talented team in this year’s playoff pool, but they continue to find ways to win basketball games, and that’s all that matters.
