“I'm not giving him credit for what happened in Game 2” - Shannon Sharpe on Miami Heat’s secret weapon going into NBA Finals
The Miami Heat were able to tie up the season series 1-1 by stealing a Game 2 win on the road recently. The win was a hard-fought one, that saw the team overcome the odds in order to tie things on the back of a big performance from several key players.
Jimmy Butler racked up 21 points and nine assists over 40 minutes, while Bam Adebayo contributed 21 points and hauled down nine rebounds. In addition, Gabe Vincent helped fuel the team with 23 points, and Max Strus came out hot in the first from beyond the arc, finishing with 14 points.
Late-game, it was Duncan Robinson off the bench who helped the team with a pair of quick 3-pointers, fueling a 36-point quarter for the Miami Heat. Despite the praise Heat coach Spoelstra has received, Shannon Sharpe isn't ready to give him his flowers.
In a recent episode of Undisputed, Sharpe said:
"How much blame do we give him for losing game one? Skip, Game 2 the Heat made 17 of 35 3-point attempts, that's 49%. I think you should be mentioning the shooting coach, Rob Fodor, don't you think he should get mentioned?
"So what role did Spoelstra play? And say, 'you know what guys? We're gonna take 35 threes, y'all gonna his 17 of them.' So what's his role in that? Look I'm not trying to diminish the man, yeah, he's an unbelievable coach. ... but come on man.
"He's a top 3-4 coach in the NBA as we currentlu talk, but I'm not giving him credit for what happened in Game 2."
Is Erik Spoelstra the Heat's secret weapon? @ShannonSharpe reacts:
"He's a Top 3-4 coach in the NBA as we talk, but I'm not giving him credit for what happened in Game 2." https://t.co/tAw5dv8dd2
Erik Spoelstra praised for Miami Heat adjustments in Game 2
After coming up short in Game 1, Erik Spoelstra and the Miami Heat picked up a big win in Game 2, stealing a game on the road before heading back to Miami. After the game, Spoelstra spoke about the differences between the two games, specifically his decision-making.
When speaking about his decision-making, Spolestra touched on the lack of playing time Kevin Love got in Game 1 and how he helped the team win Game 2.
“I had every intention to play him [Love] in Game 1, and things just kind of went a bunch of different ways. Nothing seemed to look right, including my decision-making.
"But yes, he brings that veteran, decorated playoff championship-level experience, and you can’t really quantify what that means except for that he’s been here, he can infuse a bunch of confidence in the guys. He just has a timeliness of his winning plays.”
Despite shooting just 2-9 from the floor, Love finished as a +18 with 10 rebounds in 22 minutes. In addition, he racked up two steals in the win, earning him plenty of praise.