Spoelstra says there’s no change for Dragic, Adebayo is good to go
MiamiHeat coach Erik Spoelstra on Thursday downplayed his team’s injury report going into Friday’s Game 5 of the NBA Finals, and then shoved aside any outside opinions of his team’s chances.
Spoelstra said “status is the same” for guard Goran Dragic, who has missed the past three games with a torn plantar fascia in his left foot. Dragic was listed as “doubtful” on theHeat’s most recent injury report.
“He went through the film session and that was the bulk of what we did,” Spoelstra said of the team’s afternoon session at DisneyWorld.
As for center Bam Adebayo having said he was less than 100% in Tuesday’s Game 4 loss that dropped the Heat to a 3-1 deficit in the best-of-seven series after missing two games with a neck strain, Spoelstra said, “Bam is going to be just fine [Friday].”
“I’m not getting into percentiles,” Spoelstra said. “His full competitive spirit will be ready to go.”
Adebayo admitted Thursday he initially was “hesitant” in Game 4, until he spoke with teammate Jae Crowder.
“Jae came up to me after I got the first layup,” Adebayo said, “he’s like, ‘Take your mind off of it, it’s over. You’re out there now.’ Just locking into that, you forget about it. So I forgot about it.”
As for his team’s imposing odds, Spoelstra spelled out a four-letter expletive about not caring “what anyone else thinks” when addressing what he called “a lot of different narratives out there.”
“Whatever the storylines that are out there, we don’t care,” he said. “Our guys are the ones who are out there inthe arena marred by dust, blood, sweat and tears.”
Forward Jimmy Butler said theHeat are not ready or preparing to check out of their Disney hotel, where they have spent the past three months in the NBA’s quarantine bubble setting.
“We all believe thatwe can get this thing done,” he said. “Ain’t nobody going home yet.
“It’s not win or go home; it’s win or win,” he said. “That’s how we think about it.” Adebayo seconded the notion. “Everybody is doubting us,” he said. “But as long as the people in the locker roomand all our coaching staff have belief in us, that’s all that matters.”
Culture club
Hall of Game guard Gary Payton, whowon the 2006NBAtitle with the Heat, voiced his support for the team’s culture in a Thursday piece on The Players’ Tribune.
“Heat Culture isn’t just about winning. It’s about how you win,” he wrote. “It’s crawling to the finish line if you have to. It’s leavingNOTHINGin the tank.”
An expletive followed, with Payton stressing of theHeat’s Finals deficit, “Everyone doubts you right now. Everyone’s writing youoff. They’re getting ready to CROWN them other guys. They’re shining up that trophy for ‘em . . they’ve got that champagne on ice.
But they forgot about thing. Y’all are still here.”
Spoelstra said hewas inspired by the piece.
“I had goose bumps,” he said. “Itwas just the right timing, and what a pleasant surprise.”
Riley third
one
Heat president Pat Riley placed third in the balloting for NBA Executive of the Year released Thursday.
Los Angeles Clippers president Lawrence Frank took the honor, with his team adding Kawhi Leonard and Paul George in the 2019 offseason. Oklahoma City Thunder general manager SamPresti finished second.
The voting by fellow league executives was conducted before the NBA’s July restart, with the seeding games or playoffs not factoring into the process.
Among Riley’s moves was the signing of Butler, the drafting of Tyler Herro and KZ Okpala, the trades for Crowder, Andre Iguodala, Solomon Hill and Meyers Leonard, and the fast-track development of Kendrick Nunn and Duncan Robinson.