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Rivers expresses reluctance to change approach on James; three Game 7 preview stories

On this post, and the previous two, you will find my three stories previewing Game 7 of Heat-Celtics Saturday. This one focuses on what the Celtics say they need to do differently; the previous two are mostly from the Heat perspective:

 

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      Despite LeBron James’ epic performance, despite their offensive shortcomings Thursday, despite being crushed on the boards by 20 over the past two games, the Boston Celtics and their collection of stars are not particularly susceptible to self-doubt.

      And so the Celtics, 10-9 against the Heat the past two seasons, say they will enter Game 7 with the confidence expected of a team whose nucleus won a championship together in 2008.

      “We’ve been the underdog all year long,” said forward Paul Pierce, who shot 4 of 18 in Game 6. “We’re going into Game 7 the underdog. We’re right where we want to be. This is as hard as it gets. And I think we are prepared for it.”

      Said center Kevin Garnett: “There are a lot of confident guys in here, a lot of guys who have been through game sevens. A lot of experienced guys. We’re going to lean on that. There’s a bunch of fighters in this locker-room.”

      Though James torched the Celtics in Game 6, coach Doc Rivers said he is not inclined to change their defensive approach at the start of the game.

      “We’re always prepared to do different things, but we don’t feel like we need to,” he said. “If somebody is going off, we’re ready to make a change if we have to…. We can’t assume he’s not going to score 45 again.”

      Rivers said if the Heat wins the series, “that Game 6, you’ll always remember. If we win, Game 6 will be just another great game.”

      Rivers said other than “Tiger Woods the last two or three years, no athlete is under the scrutiny LeBron is under.” He said he “doesn’t know what else he can do” to silence critics. “He’s one of the most powerful players to ever play the game. Maybe it isn’t enough. I don’t know.”

      Celtics players were irked they did not do more to impede James. “He was comfortable all night,” said Rajon Rondo, who had 21 points and 10 assists but also seven turnovers. “We didn’t get into his airspace. I have to do a better job as far as taking care of the ball, getting into my sets. I have to make it harder for him. It was too easy.”

      The problem defending the Heat, Rivers said, is this: “In the playoffs, as good as your stuff is, the guy that can create his own shots makes it very difficult. Even when the set breaks down, you can always throw it to LeBron or Dwyane Wade and they can get a shot.”

      Kevin Garnett was limited to 12 points Thursday (6 for 14 shooting), and Rivers said, “We have to do a better job of getting Kevin the ball in the right spots. They threw him out of his rhythm and we threw him out of his rhythm.”

      The winner of Game 7 will fly to Oklahoma City on Sunday, with Game 1 of the Finals on Tuesday. Rivers said Thursday his team “is not just going to pack for Sunday. They’re going to bring suits for Tuesday and Thursday.”

      Rivers said Friday he intended no message when he said that: “What else am I going to tell them? We have to pack.”

      The Celtics are 5-1 after losses in these playoffs, with its only back-to-back defeats coming in the first two games of this series. Against Atlanta and Philadelphia, the Celtics followed their five losses with wins by an average margin of 10.6 points.

      “We got in the locker-room after the game [Thursday], and everyone talked about being better,” guard Ray Allen said. “There was a great sense of disappointment among everybody. Anger. But I know my guys will be ready next game.”

### Please check out my last two posts for more Friday afternoon news and previews of Game 7.

Heat Game 7 preview

      And so now it comes to this.

      One game.

      One game for the Heat to keep alive hopes of hoisting a championship trophy in late June.

      One game to continue shaping their legacies.

      One game to help validate this Big Three blueprint.

      Game 7.

      There’s nothing more exhilarating and excruciating in sports.

      “That,” Udonis Haslem said, “is what you dream about. It will be the toughest battle we’ve had all playoffs.”

      LeBron James lifted his team, and this city, on his shoulders Thursday, delivering numbers (45 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists) achieved by only one other player in postseason history: Wilt Chamberlain.

      But can he deliver another magnificent, mesmerizing performance against Boston on Saturday, this time on his home court?

      “I don’t know,” he said. “I’ll continue to play at a high level, like I’ve done the whole postseason… I will not regret Game 7. I will go in with the mindset I’ve had the whole season.”

      James has averaged more points in elimination games (31.4) than any player in NBA history – one-tenth of a point more than Michael Jordan. James is 3-6 in elimination games – Jordan was 6-7 – but James will be buttressed Saturday by a supporting cast stronger than any he had in Cleveland.

      “He’s committed to do whatever it takes, and it might be another effort like that,” coach Erik Spoelstra said Friday. “It might not be needed to be that great. Whatever he is asked, he’ll do. He’s a brilliant basketball player.”

      The Celtics have directed more of their double teams at Dwyane Wade than James in this series. Asked Friday if the Celtics will change their defensive approach on James, coach Doc Rivers said, “We’re not going to do much. We have to do what we’re supposed to do better first. If we have to make changes, we will.”

      The problem is James can inflict damage in many different ways. “It’s a joy to watch,” Wade said.

     James excelled in isolations Thursday, shooting 8 for 14 and scoring 20 points after producing just 24 points on 9 for 30 shooting on isolations in the first five games.

      He converted all four of his shots in the basket area.

      And James hit all seven of his shots on post-ups and drew a foul another time. James, who was fourth in the league in points per possession on post-ups this season, was 6 for 16 posting up in the first five games.

      “I was aggressive from the opening tip,” James said. “It’s a great feeling, when you feel like everything you’re putting up is going in.”

      Teammates weren’t surprised. “You all see that look he had on his face?” Mario Chalmers said. “He had that look on his face since [Wednesday] night at dinner. We knew he was going to come out ready to play. That’s why he’s the MVP. I call it his ugly look.”

      The other two pieces of the Big Three contributed in different ways Thursday. But more will be expected Saturday, especially in Wade’s case after a 6 for 17 shooting night and another subpar first half (1 for 6).

      With Chris Bosh, the numbers were modest (seven points, six rebounds in 28 minutes), but his impact was not.

      Consider that Miami shot 53.3 percent (24 for 45) with Bosh in the game and 41.9 percent (13 for 31) with Bosh on the bench. Kevin Garnett is unlikely to leave Bosh unguarded on the perimeter – as he would, say Joel Anthony – to offer help on James or Wade. The upshot is easier, less contested shots for others.

      “We’re a different team when Chris is on the court,” Spoelstra said. “You have to guard him. Great shooter from outside, great passer. We’ve said for two years he’s our most important player. He’s the guy that makes it all work.”

      Spoelstra used two natural power rotation players in tandem less than eight minutes in games one through five. But he paired Bosh and Haslem together for 12 minutes in Game 6, and the Heat outscored the Celtics 35-19 during that time.

      A case could be made to start Bosh and Haslem together in Game 7 – the Heat started the playoffs 5-1 with that lineup before Bosh’s injury – but Spoelstra might stick with Shane Battier and bring Bosh off the bench. Spoelstra was typically non-committal about that Friday.

      For all of Wade’s offensive struggles in the first half of this series, he put his imprint on Game 6 with eight rebounds, four assists, three steals and sturdy defense on Rajon Rondo. Unlike past games, the Heat opened with Wade guarding Rondo, and Mario Chalmers on Ray Allen.

      Rondo shot 2 for 7 and scored six points with Wade guarding him, 6 for 7 against everybody else.

      Even so, Wade must be more efficient offensively Saturday. “Certain shots hopefully I’ll make that I missed [in Game 6],” he said. “If not, I’ll still make an impact on the game. I’m not a one-dimensional player.”

      Game 7, Wade said, “is going to be a knockout after knockout after knockout after knockout game. Hopefully, we’re standing at the end.”

      Said Spoelstra: “I don’t think this group gets too high, too low, too jittery. If anything, the big lights, the moments like this are the ones these guys froth at the mouth for.”

 

      CELTICS AT HEAT

      When/where: 8:30 p.m., AmericanAirlines Arena

      TV/radio: ESPN; WAXY 790; WQBA 1140 (Spanish)

      The series: Tied 3-3

      The game: Erik Spoelstra wouldn’t say his starting lineup, but even if he sticks with Shane Battier, except plenty of Chris Bosh, whose minutes will continue to increase after 14 and 28 in his first two games back. The Celtics could try to double team LeBron James more than they have, but Doc Rivers suggested he would change his approach only if James is hot early.

Friday afternoon Heat-Celtics notes; Heat's strategic moves pay off

LeBron James was reason one through 100 why the Heat won Thursday, but strategic moves also paid dividends in Game 6.

Instead of fronting Kevin Garnett, the Heat played him more from behind, with more frequent double teams. That mostly eliminated the easy lobs that tormented the Heat the previous three games.

“We just tried to give him a lot of different looks,” Udonis Haslem said.

It also helped that the Heat had two natural power rotation players on the floor – in this case, Chris Bosh and Haslem – for 12 minutes, more than during the first five games combined. “When we play with size, we’re more physical,” coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Garnett also was off on his jump shot, shooting 1 for 6 outside the paint.

In another change, Spoelstra had Dwyane Wade defend Rajon Rondo at the start of both halves, instead of Mario Chalmers. Not only did Rondo shoot 2 for 7 and score just six points when Wade was defending him, but he didn’t get to the basket against Wade, who gave him a cushion on jump shots.

According to ESPN’s Stats and Information department, Rondo’s seven shots against Wade were 13.6 feet away from the basket, on average, with none inside of five feet.

Rondo was 6 for 7 against other Heat defenders (15 points), but his average shot distance was 4.6 feet on those attempts.

Spoelstra on Friday was reluctant to discuss the defensive changes on Garnett and Rondo, saying only, “Whatever it takes. This series is changing. There are adjustments on both sides. That doesn’t necessarily mean that’s the way it will go [Saturday night]. We’ll have to read the game. Rondo will be very aggressive. Rio had a tougher assignment of chasing Ray Allen to our help all night.”

Meanwhile, ESPN’s Magic Johnson said after Game 6, “Spoelstra did something great. He got both of his superstars on the move. LeBron never took two straight shots the same.”

THIS AND THAT

Even though the players were off Friday, Spoelstra noted Bosh came to AmericanAirlines Arena for a workout.

“That says a lot about him – that he knows he needs to continue to fight to gain his rhythm and get closer to the form he was playing at the end of the year, which was his best basketball,” Spoelstra said. “We don’t need him to play at that level to win. He gave us excellent minutes at both ends.”

Bosh said playing through any lingering effects of his abdominal strain “is all in the mind. No matter how I feel, I give my minutes. Play as hard as I can, just worry about everything after the game.”

### Bosh admitted: “Before, we didn’t have the same urgency we did [in Game 6]. If we gave that effort every time we step on the court, we’re going to be a tough team to beat.”

### The Heat did not openly celebrate Thursday’s win because, as Shane Battier put it, “If we’re jumping around like a bunch of frat boys, then we’re not doing any service to our team for Game 7.”

### The 8.2 major-market rating for Thursday’s game was the highest for an NBA playoff game on cable, with records dating to 2003. Game 4 of this series now ranks second on the all-time cable list.

In Miami-Fort Lauderdale, 22 percent of homes with TV sets were tuned in – well below South Florida’s 33.7 average rating for the NBA Finals last season. But The Finals games were on ABC; these games are on ESPN, which is not available in 6.4 percent of South Florida homes.

### Asked about Western Conference champion Oklahoma City, Spoelstra said, “With all due respect, next question.”

### The home team is 88-22 all time in seventh games of NBA playoff series. “We fought and earned the right to have this on our home court,” Spoelstra said. But “we don’t assume that will take care of everything.”