NFL
By: Mark T. Wilson
The 2023 NBA Finals are in full swing with the series tied 1-1 heading into Game 3 in Miami. This series is coming down to the coaches. Erik Spoelstra vs Michael Malone and right now, it’s Spo winning that battle. Yes, the series record would say that it’s even but that doesn’t tell the entire story for the NBA Finals so far.
In Game 1, even in defeat, the Miami Heat knew they had the game. The issue was not bad coaching, it was miss shot. Spo put his team in the best position to win but the rim had a lid on it. Mike Malone on the other hand, his team was able to capitalize on the shooting woes of the Heat.
It’s hard to win when 2 of your best perimeter shooters go 1-14 from beyond the arc. As many have said following Game 1, if Max Strus and Duncan Robinson made their open looks, the Heat would be up 1-0. But that didn’t happen. Malone and the Denver Nuggets found a way to get to the line where they shot 16-20 while the Heat went to the line just twice and shot 2-2. Hmmm!!!
From the start, it was a change in the lineup. Caleb Martin would be replaced by the veteran Kevin Love. What Love provided in Game 2 was 6 points, 2 steals, and 10 rebounds in 22 minutes of action. Didn’t seem like much but that was a huge move on that part of Spoelstra. But that was just the beginning of his adjustment and tactics.
As good as the Nuggets and Malone are, they have flaws. During their run through the Western Conference Playoffs, no one was able to exploit that weakness. However, in the NBA Finals, the Heat have. The way to beat the Nuggets is to let Malone beat them for you. In the playoffs, Malone has gone mostly 8 players deep in his rotation. While it has worked, against Spoelstra, it may cost him a championship.
Bruce Brown, Christian Braun, and Jeff Green are a solid bench rotation but when Spo can throw out an entire second unit of 5 players that rotates between Love or Martin (Game 2), Robinson, Haywood Highsmith, Kyle Lowry, and Cody Zeller, how can Malone stop that?
Spoelstra understands that teams win and not individuals. The Nuggets are built around Nikiol Jokic and Jamal Murray. But as we’ve seen the adjustment in Game 2, Erik Spoelstra decided to take away the passing lanes for Jokic (4 assists compared to 14 in Game 1) and let him score (41 points compared to 27 in Game 1), which forced Murray to be the facilitator (10 assists) and less of a scorer (18 compared to 26 in Game 1). But even then, it was the minutes.
Malone had no answer for the Heat’s second unit. While the Nuggets’ bench scored 26 points, the Heat bench put up 26 as well. It looks equal but how many games will we see Green put up 7 or more points? But it’s not about the points. It’s about tiring out the Nuggets. They can no longer afford to keep chasing the Heat’s perimeter players around.
Spo Is At The Top Of His Game During NBA Finals
For the life of me, I can’t figure out why Malone has not inserted Thomas Bryant into the rotation. What was the point of trading for him if you won’t use his muscle? Spo inserted Love for the same reason plus his outside shooting. Bryant had a great first half of the season with the Los Angeles Lakers so he can produce when called upon.
The Nuggets had 4 players play over 35 minutes in Game 2 while Miami had just 2. They were fresher heading into the 4th quarter and it showed. What kept the Nuggets in the game was that Murray got hot late and Jokic was on a tear. All great points heading into Game 3 but can their legs keep this up for the rest of the series?
Erik Spoelstra has been here before. He knows what type of team he has on his hands. They’ve fought through adversity all season and during the playoffs. They trust each other and most importantly, they trust their coach. Malone has to make adjustments. He can’t continue to ride his players like he has the first 2 games. Spo saw that something wasn’t working in Game 1 and in Game 2, he made the necessary adjustments.
During the game, he knew just who to sub in and the tight moment to sub them in. When Jokic is out, the Nuggets have no choice but to go small. But the Heat can counter that with either Bam, Highsmith, or Zeller and not sacrifice rebounding or defense. The same goes for the shooting. When Strus, Gabe Vincent, or Martin is out, they can be replaced with Robinson, Lowry, or Love.
We can see that these NBA Finals will come down to matchups and rotations. Tied at 1 game a piece, it will be the decision of the coaches who will win this series.
