Perhaps LeBron James should consider working a yoga session into his everyday routine.
After getting slammed by critics for cramping up in the final minutes of the Miami Heat’s Game 1 loss to the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA Finals, James said he didn’t change his routine before Game 2 other than doing a little yoga at 8 a.m. on Sunday.
Whether it was the yoga, the AT&T Center having a functional air-conditioning system or just the fact that James is the best player in the world, the Heat superstar responded in the best way possible last night, going for 35 points on 14-for-22 shooting (including 3-for-3 from deep) and 10 rebounds to lead Miami to a 98-96 Game 2 win and a 1-1 Finals split with the series shifting to South Beach for the next two games.
The King reigned supreme in Game 2 despite getting off to a bit of a rough start.
In the opening quarter, James was just 1-of-4 from the field and turned the ball over three times—numbers that belie the mentality James displayed right from the opening tip.
Normally preferring to get revved up as the game progresses, James was aggressive in looking for his own offence right from the get-go. That aggression was rewarded in the final three quarters in which he scored 33 points on 13-of-18 shooting.
The People of Miami’s Elbow
As excellent as James’s performance was in Game 2, however, the biggest story of the evening came from one of the smallest men on the floor.
With 6:43 left to play in the fourth quarter, Mario Chalmers drove baseline with Tony Parker draped all over him and elbowed the French all-star in the ribs, causing Parker to drop to the floor in agony. Chalmers was assessed a flagrant foul on the play, giving San Antonio two shots and the ball.
Whether he was still seriously smarting from the shot to the mid-section or not, Parker—an 81.1 percent free-throw shooter this season—missed both attempts. And that’s when things got really bad for the Spurs. Tim Duncan got fouled on the ensuing possession and, despite being a 73.1 percent free-throw shooter this season, missed both free-throw attempts. Following that, James went down and stuck a triple from the left wing.
A two-point Spurs lead that should’ve ballooned to six suddenly turned into a one-point deficit with all the momentum swinging toward the Heat.
So what started off as a sneaky little play that got caught and was rightfully penalized by the officials, morphed into the biggest turning point of the game. The blow to the morale San Antonio suffered seeing its best player in total anguish on the floor was akin to the Heat’s bench seeing James carried off by his teammates in Game 1.
With one major difference: Had Parker stepped up and drilled both free throws, the thought would have been, “He’s okay.” But he didn’t, and his misses, along with Duncan’s, had to demoralize the Spurs, giving the Heat the small edge they needed to pull out Game 2.
Going forward, the physical play Chalmers demonstrated could go a long way for the Heat, as Miami was getting pushed around a bit by San Antonio before the elbow.
How do the Spurs respond to James on Parker?
In addition to dealing with the Heat’s newfound physicality, Gregg Popovich is going to have to find a way to solve the problem of James’s defence on Parker.
Just like in last year’s Finals, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is banking on James to shut down Parker in the fourth quarter and, from the evidence in Game 2, it looks like he’s hit gold once again.
Parker’s greatest asset is his ability to get in the paint and either finish or suck in extra defenders to open up a man in the corner or a big rolling toward the basket. With James guarding him, however, Parker’s greatest strength appears to be neutralized as James has the size to bother his shot, the lateral quickness to stay with him and the athleticism to recover in time should Parker get around the corner.
In short, James completely shuts Parker down, and because he doesn’t need help to keep the Spurs’ point guard in check, the rest of Miami’s defenders can stay at home with their assignments and avoid giving up open threes and cutting lanes.
So, how can the Spurs stop this defensive scheme? Parker is absolutely integral to their success and they’re going to really struggle if they can’t find a way to get him some separation from James.
One solution may be to have Parker work off the ball and force James to chase him around screens, which could give the point man a little more space to work with when he does get the ball.
Another could be for Kawhi Leonard to make James work harder on the offensive end. Parker’s only going to see James in the fourth quarter because James needs to conserve energy throughout the game in order to stay with the French lightning bolt. If Leonard can make James work that much harder to get shots, it could mean an extra half-step for Parker in the fourth.
There’s no one solution to this problem, but it’s absolutely essential for the Spurs to find something that works if they intend to knock off the champs.