High-intensity playoffs are made up of a series of matches, especially the higher-intensity Finals.
You don't even need much summary to explain why the tenacious Heat would have lost in such an important Finals, and the phrase "undersized" is enough to sum up everything the Heat lost to Denver.
When Aaron Gordon plays absolute dominance in every misalignment — even Jimmy Butler's not a misalignment, but a match between No. 4 – you don't seem to have to pull too much into complex and nuanced tactical analysis to explain the game.
(Gordon forced JB, JB can't do anything)
(Gordon has absolute dominance over the misalignment of the Heat)
(This should be Gordon's easiest set of games this year)
When a team that averages 20 free throws per game in the playoffs only makes 2 free throws in the game and you don't feel like the referee is in question, you know it's a one-sided game in terms of size and talent.
I think my friends who play basketball can understand that there is nothing to discuss in itself for a 1.6 player to play a 1.9m player, and a 1.6m thin man to play a 1.9m strong man, this matter should not be established.
No one will voluntarily arrange such a counterpoint, unless there is really no way.
And that's the situation with the Heat, who don't have players who can match the Nuggets' size to smooth out the disadvantage of the alignment relationship in the face of the Nuggets' overall young and strong flesh.
Murray is a lap bigger than Lowry and Vincent, Porter Jr. and Gordon are also a lap bigger than all the Heat forwards, and Jokic is a lap bigger than Adebayo...
In the face of absolute size, it seems that the hardness alone is not enough?
(MPJ rushed up, and the heat couldn't stop it too much)
(Since the opponent's No. 5 is Adebayo, it is no problem to play 5 with Jeff Green to buy enough rest for Jokic)
Moreover, after the consumption of the three rounds of the Bucks, Knicks, and Celtics, how much physical reserve does the Heat have to keep them strong?
Moreover, the young flesh on the Nuggets' side is not only big, but also hard enough.
The Heat's first attack in the opening game seemed to have laid the groundwork for the result of the first game of the Finals, that round Adebayo did not choose to eat Murray, who was already in a misposition, but chose Vincent in the bottom corner of the ball, allowing Vincent to undertake the misplaced finish, but Vincent also did not successfully complete the trust that Adebayo passed - he faced Jokic, it is reasonable to say that Vincent can use speed and mobility to train Teacher Jokic, but the reality is the opposite.
Jokic first pounced on the bottom corner, then forced Vincent to step back and shoot, and finally was able to send his own interference in front of Vincent in time. And that's something he couldn't do last year in front of the Warriors' three shots.
(Murray can defend Adebayo, and Teacher Jo can delay Vincent)
In other words, the Heat's most potential neuroknife (analogous to last year's Poole) can't cut a defensive hole in Jokic, who has quietly evolved defensively. And the Nuggets' small guard will not be eaten by the Heat's interior line.
This time and again, it has already stripped the Heat's counterpoint relationship.
(Not only defense, but also the Nuggets' offense this round also explains what is called the advantage of counterpoint)
There is no doubt that the Heat are currently in an extremely serious counterpoint, and they can't seem to find any counterpoint to take advantage of in this set of matches, and even Butler, who has always been able to devour his opponent mentally and physically one-on-one in the first 3 rounds of the series, seems to have to shrink his eggs - every breakthrough attack must first overcome Gordon or Porter Jr., who is one size larger than him, and then there is Jokic crouching under the basket waiting to deliver him hot pot.
(JB is continuously blocked by MPJ and Yoyo-sensei)
We all say that the Celtics may have the best defensive resources, but Butler's 0-of-game free throws tell us that playing 1.98 Brown, 2.03 Tatum and 2.06 Lowe is much simpler than Gordon with 2.03, Porter Jr. at 2.08 and Jokic at 2.11...
It's not just Butler, but the invisibility of the two strikers who played the Celtics also tells us that the size of the Heat has been dominated by the Nuggets - Dunroe's open cut has completely disappeared, and Kleb Martin, who averaged 19.3 points + 60.2% shooting per game in the East final, only 1 of 7...
Does size matter? Or is hardness important? I don't have an answer.
But the results of the 2023 Finals G1 tell us that the Nuggets beat the Heat's hardness by 100 points.
As D'Antoni once said, there is no difference between offense and defense, only execution. In other words, the Heat haven't completely extinguished yet, and although they don't have the size to match the Nuggets, if they can play far more hardness than the Nuggets, the game seems to be worth it.
So, will Hilo's return be a lifesaver for the Heat?
If Hiro can train Jokic like Poole did last year, he can. If he can't play this firepower, then Hiro is just another toy for the Nuggets from No. 1 to No. 5.