Here’s what Lakers coach had to say about the Miami Heat. And Magic’s question to Wade
LeBron James won’t address facing his former team until Tuesday, but Los Angeles Lakers coach Frank Vogel weighed in Monday, saying the Heat essentially has three All-Stars and a veteran Hall of Famer in uniform.
“The Heat have a lot of ways they can beat you,” Vogel said.
“They have three All-Star-level players in Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Goran Dragic. When healthy, Dragic is an All-Star-level player. They [acquired] a Hall of Famer in Andre Iguodala.
“They have shooting, they have toughness. No surprise they’ve had such a successful postseason run. Very impressed with what they’ve been able to do beating three teams convincingly that if we played 82 games were on pace to win 50 games.”
Vogel said Bam Adebayo is already a star: “He’s terrific. Had a chance to spend a little time with him All-Star weekend. Great talent, fits the modern NBA with all he can do. Like [Denver center] Nikola Jovic, he will pick the ball up at the five position and run the break, which is very unique for the center position. He can do it all, is a huge reason for their success this year.”
Vogel declined to discuss the Lakers’ discussions with Butler last summer but said he “fit with their culture and is perfect [for their culture] because he’s about toughness and winning; that’s what the Miami Heat is about. We’re going to have to be at our best to beat them. He has really set a tone for them from a toughness standpoint and being about winning.”
Vogel said Iguodala is “an historically good perimeter defender. That’s why he’s going to the Hall of Fame. Great length, great hands, great feet, containment ability, toughness. They have a few different guys they can throw at LeBron [James]. They have a lot of defensive firepower.”
When a reporter noted the Heat’s ample use of zone defense, Vogel said: “We feel good about attacking whatever defense they throw out. We have a plan on attacking each of them. They do a great job of mixing their coverages, as do we between man and zone. It’s something we will be prepared for.”
Spoelstra and Vogel squared off in three Eastern Conference playoff series, and Vogel said “we have a familiarity with the things that are important to each other on the court. The on-court culture that each of us tries to set, that familiarity will be present in this series. A ton of respect to Spo. He does a great job both sides of the ball.. We started our paths the same way.. in the video room.”
Vogel studied Heat tape in learning how to coach James.
“I did study a lot of those series we competed against them. We did with Cleveland too, saw the different ways coaches utilized him to put him in the best position to succeed. But the league’s very different now. They began their part of the evolution sliding Chris Bosh to [center] and playing with five three-point shooters when most of the league was not doing it at the time.”
MAGIC’S QUESTION TO WADE
After the Heat eliminated the Celtics on Sunday, Lakers great Magic Johnson tweeted: “The million-dollar question is who will @DwyaneWade be cheering for?? His former team, the Heat, or his best friend LeBron James?”
Wade’s response: “We call this a win/win but it’s #HeatNation over here!”
▪ As expected, the Heat will be a heavy underdog, according to Las Vegas oddsmakers.
The Lakers enter the series with 2-to-7 (-350) odds to win the championship, and the Heat is facing 14-to-5 (+280) odds, according to BetOnline. Miami stood as a five-point underdog for Game 1, as of Monday afternoon.
▪ According to StatMuse, Adebayo (23 years, 71 days) is the second-youngest player to finish at least 30 points and 10 rebounds in a win that clinched a trip to the NBA Finals. Only Rick Barry (23 years, 15 days) did so at a younger age.
▪ This is the first time in NBA history, two teams who did not qualify for the playoffs the previous season will meet in the Finals. Both the Heat and Lakers were 10th in their conferences last season.
▪ Spoelstra is the eighth coach to make at least five Finals appearances.
Here’s the list: Phil Jackson (13), Red Auerbach (11), Pat Riley (9), John Kundla and Gregg Popovich (six apiece) and Spoelstra, Steve Kerr and K.C. Jones (five).
Meanwhile, Heat president Pat Riley has reached the Finals as a player, coach or executive for six consecutive decades.
Here are more Monday Heat notes on Tyler Herro and more.
This story was originally published September 28, 2020 at 5:23 PM.
