Jokic is the first man in the playoffs! The hexagonal giant on the field The Heat may not have a way to crack it

Originally compiled from: The Athletic

Written by William Guillory

原文标题：Heat left with few options against Nuggets’ big frontcourt size advantage

Jokic and Nuggets' size advantage is too prominent

In the first game of the NBA Finals, Nikola Jokic seemed to burst out and roar, announcing to the world that he was the most dominant player in the game.

However, he may not need to yell at all, and the Nuggets can control the situation early. He didn't look sweaty in the first quarter, just

Calmly tore apart the Heat's defense.

His first shot didn't strike until 3.3 seconds left in the round. But that's what makes Jokic great. No one is better at finding holes in defense and tearing them to pieces from all angles.

From the opening game, it's clear that the Nuggets' frontcourt players are too sized, which is a big reason why they won 104-93 in Game 1 Thursday night.

Gordon played well in the opening game, scoring 12 of the game's 16 points in the first quarter. Despite poor outside shooting, Michael Porter Jr. had 14 points and 13 rebounds. Jeff Green even came off the bench to contribute a couple of key points.

That doesn't include Jokic's 27 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists, making him the second player in NBA history to score a triple-double in his Finals debut (the previous being Jason Kidd). He shot 8-of-12 and didn't show a sweat until the second half.

This is the second time Jokic and Nuggets have scored less than 105 points per game in this year's playoffs, but it feels like they've been familiar with it for most of the time. Against Miami's smaller men, they have maintained an easy lead. Due to a lack of concentration, the Heat were caught making too many mistakes inside or on layups.

Test the tactical setup of the Heat head coach

As the series progresses, some of these issues can be addressed with a deeper analysis of the Nuggets' tactical arrangement. But Heat coach Eric Spoelstra, the king of playoff adjustments, has hard work to do in this game, but it's hard to do.

"I think they play a lot of physical confrontation and we have to be able to match that. They got it done on their home turf. Jimmy Butler said. We have to do better, play our bodies against our bodies, make sure we challenge everything under the basket, don't give up every back cut, try to run for open three-point opportunities. ”

Spoelstra placed Caleb Martin in the starting lineup in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals, replacing Kevin Loew to match the pace of the Celtics. In Game 1 against the Nuggets, he stuck with that arrangement, but that strategy may not work in this series.

It seems Spoelstra has two options as he prepares for Game 2 Sunday night: change his lineup again and try to match the Nuggets' stature, or bolster the small-ball lineup's offense in the hope that three-pointers start hitting a lot of shots.

Despite having played poorly in all three games, he is a viable option in the starting line-up. Miami can use him against Gordon, and even in some positions against Jokic.

The Heat could also rely more on Heywood Highsmith, who scored 18 points on the bench and was more muscular as a taller wing, which made it easier for him to switch to multiple alignments. Against Jokic and Gordon, his defensive performances were not ideal, but he was better able to hold his ground than Martin and Strus. Not to mention Cody Zeller's botched performance on Thursday night.

Strus and Martin are where this adjustment gets tricky. After nearly winning the Eastern Conference Finals MVP, Martin's return to the bench would be a bit of a shock. He scored just 3 points in the first game, but the shots he created helped Butler take some of the load off.

Strus is another option to the bench, but if he and Duncan Robinson are on the bench, the team will lack the ability to hold the ball on the outside.

Then, putting Loew into the starting line-up could lead Jamal Murray to attack him as much as possible in the block. Murray, who had 26 points, six rebounds and 10 assists in his first game, enjoyed attacking the weak points on the defensive end almost as much as Jokic.

On the other hand, attracting Murray to play 1-on-1 more often could be the key to Miami's victory.

These are all questions that Spoelstra will consider over the next two days. There is no guarantee that he will make major changes. But the Heat's performance at the moment does make it feel like they need to change something to fix where the Nuggets hurt them.

"It's a big challenge. This needs more," Spoelstra said. "We're going to get to work and see what we can do better, we can be tougher, we can do harder, we can do it more focused, etc."

The more important thing for the Heat is to get back to the outside touch

No one would blame Spoelstra if he just stuck with his current starting lineup and believed they could score enough to match the Nuggets' high-intensity offense. If the Nuggets start pushing those games into the 110-115 range per night, Miami will need to play their best offensive weapons as much as possible. The Heat could also look back at the footage of the game and say it was probably their worst three-point performance in the Finals. It certainly couldn't have been worse for Strus, who shot 0-of-10 from the field and 0-of-9 from three-pointers.

The Heat ended up shooting 13-of-39, but six of those three-pointers came in the fourth quarter when the game was out of sight.

For the Heat, the easiest way to stay ahead in the shooting battle with the Nuggets is to shoot three-point percentage when they're at their best in the playoffs. Before the start of this series, the Heat were shooting 39 percent overall, hitting more than 15 three-pointers in seven playoff games and going 5-2 in those games.

Unfortunately, their three-point feel was icy for much of the first game, which made their offense look weak for most of the game. In Thursday's game, Strus, Martin and Robinson shot 2-of-16 from three-pointers. No matter how Spoelstra adjusts his starting lineup, Miami must make three-pointers to stay on in this series. The Heat need to get all the points they can from the Nuggets.

While his lead shooters didn't show anything in the first game, Spoelstra still believes their shots will start hitting at some point if they keep going. If Miami is more inclined to an offensive strategy and hopes to keep up with the Nuggets, those shots will have to hit right away.

"They are good. I mean, they don't get dizzy all the time. If they are goalscorers, you can't always get all the shots you want. Then you have to find different ways to influence the game," Spall said, "and we also have players who can explode with their hands. If you see them score some goals, those goals can cause an avalanche in the game. But either way, we have to find a way to do the job. ”

Butler desperately needs to get back to form

A key part of creating more three-point opportunities is dribbling breakthroughs more often, which falls entirely on Butler's shoulders.

Butler's recent inefficiency continues, with 13 points, seven rebounds and seven assists on 6-of-14 shooting. In the last four games, he shot 28-of-73 (38.3 percent).

While the shooting numbers aren't ideal, what the Heat need most is Butler to play more aggressively, as a basket killer, putting pressure on the Nuggets' defense. If he starts dribbling again to break through the defense, it will leave goalscorers like Strus and Robinson free to enjoy open opportunities. So far, Butler doesn't look like he used to be, as the wear and tear of the playoffs has clearly consumed him considerably.

His lack of aggression under the basket is evident from his zero free throws. It was the first time in the playoffs that he had finished without a free throw.

The Heat need Butler to regain the energetic style of play he hated early in the playoffs. Adebayo made up for the lack with 26 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. Still, Butler's aggressiveness in his presence will make the game easier for others.

"Maybe I need to be a little more aggressive. I put pressure on the basket. Me, no free throws? It's all my own responsibility, and it has nothing to do with anyone else. Butler said. So we'll definitely fix that in the next game, but only I can do it. ”

When faced against a player like Jokic, the problem is that some moves will work for a while, but he will eventually find a way.

Maybe a little bigger inside would distract him a few times. Perhaps Miami could have made 45 three-pointers in Game 2. Maybe Taylor Hiro is back and starting to turn the tide.

Jokic is a headache for the entire league

In the end, Jokic is the smartest player in the world, and he will always find a way to exploit Miami's weaknesses. The likelihood of this series getting tight will depend on whether Miami can play more power and make the Nuggets uncomfortable on the offensive end.

It wasn't easy, but Spoelstra had to start somewhere looking for answers.

"I never bet on plans. Plans can't save us. Only tenacity and determination — collective determination. This is our best weapon. "When we come together and commit to an incredibly difficult task." That's what our team loves to do the most: compete, go out and do what people don't think they can't. ”