We all know that the Heat does not have the best offense in the NBA, and it was with forceps, with a lot of zone, that Jimmy Butler’s teammates reached the final. But facing a formation like Denver, where we meet very good defenders like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Bruce Brown or Aaron Gordon, it’s very complicated. To the point of having scored only 93, 94 and 95 points in the three defeats conceded against Denver.
“It’s been two games in a row, and we can add Game 1, where our defense is playing at a high level” points out Mike Malone. “I must congratulate our players for their involvement and their discipline. It’s been three wins where our defense has kept them under 100 points, and once again our defense on the 3-point line has a lot to do with it. They only made eight 3-pointers, and our guys are focused. They are focused on it. »
Always active hands
At the end of Game 4, in the locker room, Mike Malone handed the “game defender” chain to … Nikola Jokic! Perhaps because when he left, the Heat came back in stride at -5 (86-81), proof of his importance in the defensive system.
For Erik Spoelstra, the Serb actually plays a big role in the quality of Denver’s defense.
“It’s a little different every game” he answers about the Heat’s struggles against the Nuggets’ defense. “Tonight, it was undoubtedly the activity of their hands, whether it was to take the ball away from us on penetrations, the kicks that Jokic masters very well, the deflected passes or simply errors… It is not not like we lost 25 bullets. But whatever that number was, 15 or 16, they gave easy baskets to the other side, when we felt like we had the advantage. So it’s probably a combination of those stray balls and a few shots that we didn’t manage to put in during those periods when the game was on the line. At those times when we were at 4, 6 or 8 points… He’ll I’ll have to see that again, but that’s where I felt we missed the most chances. »
Pride to defend
In terms of stats, Denver’s dominance is confirmed with 11 interceptions and 7 blocks, against only 2 interceptions and 3 blocks for the Heat. As Aaron Gordon reminds us, the Nuggets’ attack starts from the defense with “stops” and quick raises from Nikola Jokic.
“We take a lot of pride in it” insists Aaron Gordon, the MVP of the evening. “We know that we have a very powerful and powerful attack, with attackers like Joker, Jamal, Mike, KCP, Brucy B… We have guys who can score in different ways, but we also know that what will make us win matches, it’s defence. We have guys who love to defend. Joker is not recognized enough for his defense. He’s spectacular with his hands and his cover, and KCP is the same. He is simply incredible in his perception of the ball, he knows where to place himself and how to project himself. It’s huge on a pitch. »
