POSTGAME REACTION: Miami Heat vs. Denver Nuggets, 3/13/24.
Eric you sort of addressed this pregame also about being able to finish being able to step up for 40 minutes you went toe-to-toe with the defend defending Champions then what happened then they do what they’ve done a lot this year you know they’ve they’ve had quite a few of these games um you know where they’ve been in the balance and then when they want to put on the Jets you know they’ve been able to to leave teams behind the dust and and that’s what it felt like tonight I felt like um they just flipped a
switch uh in those last four minutes Jackson was a big part of it um you know Murray was on the bench and they’re basically running those those typical Twan actions that they run with Murray and joic but they did it with Jackson and uh you know he was doing his best fa simile um of Murray um and then at that point it just created enough uh juice and separation uh that they they had that extra kick you know down the stretch and you know clearly it was a struggle for us to score um we had
moments and and and and that that’s fine actually like if we could have kept it in the mud but they had their burst and then we stayed where we were
know but certainly you know it it should have been 10 12 more um passed up open ones and then drove it into their size uh you know if you pass up you know some open ones you’re not going to get a better one and and there were definitely you know probably half dozen of those where we end up getting a worst shot um by passing up one you know that also keeps the defense honest uh you know you have to work all different aspects of your offense and um we weren’t necessarily able to do that
tonight and that’s a credit to Denver I said that when we played them in Denver they’re one of the more underrated defensive teams and since Allstar break they’ve kind of turned it on on on that side of the floor uh you know so we we couldn’t get into our normal you know Rhythm um yeah but uh yeah we we needed to um you know take a take a few more of them suppose speaking of their defense Jimmy only had two free throw attempts tonight they’ve been a little down over the last four games or so
like is there a Common Thread there as to why yeah I don’t know but you know I I think that’s an adjustment from the league you know staff has been talking about that that uh I didn’t receive a memo about it um but it’s it’s clear that there they’re calling it a little bit more like that so hey we have to make the adjustment and I think that’s a good adjustment go to score not necessarily to to um you know to draw fouls now Jimmy’s got a rugged game so he’s not going to draw fouls
he’s going to uh wherever the contact may be and yeah from my vantage point it looks like some of those you know um you know are fouls you know certainly in the last uh uh three or four games um that those were typically you know fouls but that that’s not why we’re losing games he’ll make the adjustment you know whether he has to just go into sh making mode that might have to be the adjustment uh I have to do a better job you know getting our guys uh into their strength zones where we can
still be aggressive and attack uh but hit different parts of our uh menu um and we’ll get to work on that uh you know yes it’s it’s frustrating but um you know all we’re going to focus on is what we can do to get better and and have a great great road trip until those last three um jumpers that Reggie made seemed like bam was doing about as well as you can possibly do in terms of blowing up their bread there’s no one better than the league that that can negotiate this first of all nobody
will go toe-to-toe minute for minute against jic other than Bam Bam signs up for that and he’ll put himself out there and be vulnerable you know to the competition and that’s that’s the competitor of all competitors uh and you know that that just sets the tone but it is difficult you know you have to negotiate so many different things uh uh at the top of the floor in the post you know they started to post them up a little bit more and then once you start getting comfortable with that go to the two-man action and
then you have to do pick and roll basketball you know and then ball all of a sudden will go back to him and and then now you have to play you know him off the dribble and uh and try to you know disrupt passing angles and and all that uh um you know but that’s why bam is Bam you know that’s why I always say year after year he he should be in the consider consideration for defense player of the year because he can do things and will put himself out there to try to do
things that the majority of the league won’t because it’s easier just to not not do it not not you know cuz sometimes you’re going to get beat you know joic is a great player and sometimes you’re going to get scored on or foul or uh you know you have play your pick and roll defense the ball goes back to him and he scores and somebody else didn’t do their job like there’s a lot of things that go into it um and they’re a comp complex team you know you feel like you can you have a
handle on them I mean we still hold held them to a 100 you feel like you have a handle on them and then all of a sudden they can just separate and those skirmishes at this point they do that I think better than anybody else in the league thanks coach I mean I want to say frustrating I would just say he just got looking film and figure it out um you know obviously you know part of the game you want to win you know you hold guys under uh under their averages and we still in
get win so for us is watching film and figuring how we can be better to that point you’re down one into the fourth You Really Turn the game in that third quarter and all of a sudden the first few minutes it gets away from you what changed in those first let’s say five six minutes were they were swim the game uh I think Reggie made some big shots down the stretch uh you know we were uh and that’s some we got a live with he was making shots he was in his mode and uh that’s
when he bumped it to 10 your aspect from maybe offensively were things has it been a common theme in these last four losses where when the offense bogs down has those moments where the game kind of slips away what is that common we just have to learn how to when we’re not making shots still get stops and uh and and stop teams from scoring uh it’s not a it’s not a very I don’t know how to explain this to you cuz you you know you’re not in the locker room sorry uh but you know we
just know to hold down to Fort one shot on going in you guys have seen this team a lot since June and you have like a lot of film between you and yok kind of going one-onone is that almost like a like a rivalry at this point like do you kind of know how you almost want to approach that matchup at this point point considering how much film you have on this man that’s competition um you know you live for moments like that when you’re on the biggest stage getting to compete against some of the
top players in this league um you know it’s competition at the end of the day you go out there you toss the ball up and see who wins what’s your preparation like for these matchups maybe are they is it any different between no no uh I go through my routine film same same everything it’s not a it’s not a different because I’m playing somebody else bam you’ve had good a different
