“It’s hard to create a good defense” - Erik Spoelstra talks how his team's defense was key to reaching the NBA Finals
On May 29, the Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics 84-103 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals to book their spot in the NBA Finals against the Denver Nuggets.
Throughout their series against Boston, the Miami Heat continually displayed a rugged defensive system that often stymied their offensive-minded counterparts.
When speaking to the media following the game, Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra credited his team's defense, noting how that is why they've still got a shot at a championship.
"If your best players aren't defenders, it's hard to create a good defense," Spoelstra said.
The Miami Heat ended the regular season ranked 9th in the NBA for defensive rating and currently sits 6th in the playoffs for the same statistic. However, it's what the Miami Heat do with their zone defense that is perhaps the most impressive.
For many, zone defense is seen as an admittance that you're unable to contain a team when guarding them straight up. Yet, the Heat deployed multiple iterations of their zone as part of their defensive identity rather than a ploy to cover up for their shortcomings as individual defenders.
Furthermore, both Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo are elite-level individual defenders that can switch to multiple positions and limit some of the best players in the NBA. As such, it came as no surprise that the Miami Heat were able to hold the Boston Celtics to under 90 points in Game 7.
However, it will be interesting to see what the Miami Heat do when trying to contain Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals.
Jayson Tatum wants the Celtics to keep Jaylen Brown
As the Boston Celtics enter the offseason, all eyes will be on Jaylen Brown. By making the All-NBA second team, Jaylen Brown is now eligible for the designated veteran extension, also known as the 'supermax,' and can begin discussing terms in the coming days.
When asked about the importance of retaining Jaylen Brown long-term, Jayson Tatum noted that it is "extremely important".
"It's extremely important."
Jayson Tatum on importance of Celtics keeping Jaylen Brown as he is up for a contract extension https://t.co/NgMo6zP7FM
"It's extremely important," Tatum said. "He's one of the best players in this league. Plays both ends of the ball. Still relatively young. He's accomplished a lot so far in his career. So, I think it's extremely important."
Jaylen Brown was disappointing in the Boston Celtics' loss to the Miami Heat, as he tried to take over the game but made some tough errors instead.
In 43 minutes of gameplay, Jaylen Brown produced 19 points, eight rebounds, and 5 assists on the night, but turned the ball over on eight occasions and shot just 11.1% from the perimeter while hitting just eight of his 23 field goal attempts.
A supermax contract would likely see Jaylen Brown earn approximately $290 million over five years. As such, the Celtics have a big decision to make on whether they want to commit such a large portion of their cap to a player that is prone to going away from a team-centric offense.
Fortunately for the Celtics, they will now have several months to ponder before making that decision.