The Miami Heat are obviously going to make some adjustments to their game plan following their loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. Apart from the things that can be corrected by the coaching staff, though, the players could help out quite a bit if they become more aggressive in Game 2.
NBA Finals: Miami Heat Need To Be More Aggressive In Game 2
It wasn’t evident throughout the entire game on Tuesday night, but the Heat seemed a bit more passive than they should have been in the second half. Our friends over at Peninsula is Mightier, SB Nation’s Miami Heat blog, put in a pretty firm request that Miami starts going to the rack rather than hoisting up jumpers.
Offensively, the Big Three have to stop settling for so many jump shots. James was the most aggressive of the Heat’s stars by far. He made two consecutive straight-line drives to the basket in the third quarter to halt a Thunder run and made two shots in the fourth quarter despite getting fouled both times. But he took a few jumpers on Durant when he could have driven to the basket.
As for the other two, they thoroughly disappointed. Wade made his first two jumpers on the baseline, but attempted way too many jump shots. If someone wants to look at the silver lining for Wade, he did get into the lane much more frequently late in the fourth quarter. Bosh never attempted his signature “pump fake, hard drive” move to the basket in the game. He is a great shooter for a big man, but needs to include some drives to the basket to diversify his game.
There’s little doubt that the coaching staff hammered this point home to the Heat players in between Games 1 and 2, but it’ll be interesting to see just how aggressive Miami can be as it looks to even the series.
For more on the Heat, head over to Peninsula Is Mightier and SB Nation Tampa Bay. For Thunder news and notes, visit Welcome To Loud City. And for news, analysis and everything else revolving around the NBA Playoffs, be sure to visit SB Nation’s NBA page.
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