IN THE LANE

HEAT BOND: In making the media rounds after being named New York Knicks coach, former Heat assistant David Fizdale told ESPN Radio that he was appreciative of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade standing by him during tough times, including his dismissal as Memphis Grizzlies coach. “I can’t put a price tag on that,” Fizdale said of the support of his former Heat players. “They care about you so much. They’re going to come out publicly when you’re fired whether they know the whole story or not. They just know I’m a heck of a guy and a good coach.” HEAT BOND, TOO: So did Heat President Pat Riley, who vouched for Fizdale, with Heat coach Erik Spoelstra not part of the Knicks’ vetting. “After you talk to Pat, you don’t need to talk to me,” Spoelstra told New York media on a conference call. “After you talk to The Godfather and he gives the go-ahead, you don’t need to talk to anybody else — shut down all the other interviews. You don’t have to call the references, any of that. You talked to the guy you needed to talk to.” BE LIKE BOSH: Now that his game has come around, Kevin Love again is finding himself compared to Chris Bosh, as a needed complementary scorer to James that also has to know when to get out of the way of greatness. “Being in the same breath as Chris Bosh, that’s a Hall of Famer, that’s a 10-time All-Star, that’s an NBA champion two times,” Love told reporters after his Cleveland Cavaliers swept the Toronto Raptors. “So that’s pretty rarefied air. I know when we have success I might not get the credit and when we do lose or have a bad string of games, that I might get the blame. But that comes with the territory.” LESSONS REMAIN: The NBA playoffs ultimately turned into one step forward and perhaps two steps back for Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons, who struggled in the second round against the Boston Celtics as much as he thrived in the opening round against the Heat. “I’m just learning. This is just the start for me,” he said, having finished the Celtics series at forward after dominating from the point two weeks earlier against the Heat. “I have a long way to go. So, second series and I’m learning. There’s a lot of things I learned this series that I didn’t against Miami. So that makes me a better player. So I’m grateful for those opportunities.” FAMILIAR FACE: Former Heat scout Jeff Bzdelik may be the one man who stands between the Golden State Warriors and another trip to the NBA Finals. Bzdelik, whose whirlwind since moving from the Knicks to the Heat with Riley in 1995 has included coaching stops with the Denver Nuggets and at Air Force, Colorado and Wake Forest, is the defensive coordinator on Mike D’Antoni’s Houston Rockets coaching staff. Despite D’Antoni’s high-octane offensive approach, Bzdelik, since inheriting the NBA’s 21st-ranked defense two years ago moved the Rockets to No. 6 this season. “I can’t think of a man in the NBA that has more experience, more knowledge, more wisdom about how to defend in the contemporary game today, than Jeff,” Riley told Vice Sports during the season.