Iguodala breaks down his first impression of ‘Heat Culture.’ Also, Spoelstra earns votes
Andre Iguodala joined the Miami Heat with a unique perspective.
Iguodala, who is in his 16th NBA season, spent the past six seasons with the Golden State Warriors. The veteran forward played in five NBA Finals and won three NBA championships during his Warriors tenure, playing alongside the All-Star trio of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson for the past three seasons and earning the NBA Finals MVP award in 2015.
Iguodala has actually played in the playoffs in 10 consecutive seasons with four different teams.
So when the accomplished 36-year-old was asked what he has learned about “Heat Culture” since being traded to Miami in February, his answer carried some weight.
“All people see is the work, the work, the work,” Iguodala said before the Heat and Indiana Pacers faced off in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series on Saturday. “But if you look at it from like the grand scope or the overall scope, you see a lot of players who their bodies get in tip-top shape. You talk about Solomon Hill, who he hasn’t seen any minutes in the playoffs but he’s ready to go. You see a guy whose body is getting cut up and he’s actually excited about the work that he’s getting every day because he knows going forward this is going to help his career.”
The Heat’s approach with its young players has also caught Iguodala’s attention. He gushed about rookie Tyler Herro and second-year forward Duncan Robinson on Friday, calling them “the epitome of having success but not being satisfied with the notoriety or the little success that they’ve had. They still want more.”
“As a young player coming here, you talk about player development, you talk about learning how to be a professional basketball player and what that actually means,” Iguodala said. “They set the bar in terms of how do you get a young guy to understand focus, film, studying, working on your game, keeping your strengths tight, then taking your weaknesses and turning those into strengths as well. You’re seeing guys like a guy like Udonis Haslem, how long his career has been. You see Pat Riley and you read his book ‘The Winner Within,’ which I read about five or six years ago so I had a pretty decent idea before I got here.”
For Iguodala, he’s growing more comfortable with his new team every day. The two-year, $30 million extension he signed with the Heat to facilitate the February trade begins next season, and the 2021-22 season is a team option.
“They always say experience is the best teacher. I’ve been able to really get a good feel for different lineups, different groups,” Iguodala said of settling into his role as a primary option off Miami’s bench. “... For me if I see a group out there playing, it’s just trying to identify what I’ll bring to the table or value that I’ll bring if I possibly get in with that group.”
COACH OF YEAR VOTING
Toronto’s Nick Nurse was named the NBA Coach of the Year on Saturday. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra finished fourth in the voting behind Nurse, second-place Mike Budenholzer from the Milwaukee Bucks and third-place Billy Donovan from the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Spoelstra received zero first-place votes, 13 of 100 second-place votes and 15 of 100 third-place votes.
The Heat has two finalists for individual NBA awards: center Bam Adebayo for the Most Improved Player honor and guard Kendrick Nunn for the Rookie of the Year award.
MEYERS LEONARD STAYING READY
For the first time since falling out of the Heat’s rotation, center Meyers Leonard spoke to reporters following Friday’s practice.
Leonard started his first 49 games with the Heat this season before missing 16 consecutive games prior to the league shutdown because of a sprained left ankle. When the season resumed at Disney, he was moved to a bench role.
Leonard played in just two of the eight seeding games and did not play in either of the first two playoff games.
“I’m not going to say it has been easy,” Leonard said Friday of falling out of the rotation. “I absolutely love it, man. I love competing with this team. I love everything that this organization is about. There’s something about this group of guys, our staff, everybody around this organization that I truly, truly enjoy. And a piece of that is missing for me. And it would be ignorant for me to say that I don’t truly, truly miss that. However, staying ready is important, so when I get my opportunity I’ll be prepared.”
It turns out Leonard is still rehabbing his ankle injury, too. The pandemic limited what he was able to do to get back into basketball shape after a “significant” ankle sprain.
“I have to continue to do my rehab,” Leonard said. “Because that’s another big part of this. I’ll just break into it: With COVID, everyone said, ‘OK, well Meyers had a ton of time off.’ And that was great. However, because of the virus, I wasn’t able to get the exact treatment I needed. I was doing all of my rehab in my house. I was being a true professional to a T. However, when I arrived here, I had only done jump shots at the arena. That’s basically it, and rehab on occasion, outside of doing stuff on my own.
“So, while having rest was good, I did have a significant injury and I am a good healer. However, I needed hands-on treatment from our staff. Now I’m receiving that every single day and it has helped me immensely.”
In non-basketball news, Leonard said he and his wife Elle Leonard donated $100,000 “to the City of Miami, to Liberty City and Overtown, because they were slammed by voter suppression and COVID.”
“I have felt connected to this city immediately, and that was something that we felt we could do to help a place that clearly needed it,” Leonard said.
▪ As for Nunn’s situation, Leonard said it “hasn’t been easy.”
Nunn, who started in each of his 67 appearances during the regular season, was moved to the bench like Leonard at the start of the playoffs. And like Leonard, Nunn did not play in either of the first two games of Miami’s first-round series.
“He’s younger than me,” Leonard said. “This is something I’ve been through and it’s not necessarily something he’s had to deal with, especially after being top three in the Rookie of the Year race. We’re in the playoffs, this is where you want to shine. And he’s not getting an opportunity right now. However, there’s going to be a moment that we need Kendrick Nunn, make no mistake. And if he’s ready, which his is working hard every single day, watching film, studying, getting in extra work, he’ll be ready for the moment.”
▪ The Heat listed Jae Crowder (sprained left ankle) and Derrick Jones Jr. (sprained left ankle) as questionable for Game 3. But Crowder and Jones are active and available Saturday.
Rookies KZ Okpala (personal reasons) and Gabe Vincent (right shoulder sprain) remained out.
The Pacers remained without All-Star center Domantas Sabonis (left foot plantar fasciitis) and wing Jeremy Lamb (torn left ACL) for Game 3.
This story was originally published August 22, 2020 at 9:04 AM.
