Erik Spoelstra sends ‘cram for the test’ warning to Heat ahead of Game 2 vs. Celtics

Bam Adebayo, Erik Spoelstra talk Heat’s mindset heading into Game 2 

Star Bam Adebayo was really good in Game 1 as he led the team with 24 points, six rebounds and being the captain of the Heat, he gave an assessment on what he’s been seeing from the team in the two days they’ve had to prepare. He said to ClutchPoints that besides having a heightened intensity being down 0-1 series, he has the mindset that “it’s the first one to four.”

“There’s a general understanding of what we gotta do,” Adebayo said. “It’s the first one to four, you gotta have that mentality. They won the first one, how we do we bounce back and respond?”

Adebayo will be crucial to the success of Miami on both ends of the floor, especially his defense where he has been recognized this season as a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year. Himself along with stars like Tyler Herro and rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. will take the Heat as far as they can go as they continue to deal with the absences of Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier.

As the Heat’s star center questioned, after an ugly loss in the first game, it will be interesting to see how they adapt and respond in Game 2. For Spoelstra, it all starts with Miami’s habits as he said to ClutchPoints when asked what he’s been seeing from the team during the break.

“You guys always ask me how I feel about the team. It really comes down to your habits and just continuing to work your habits,” Spoelstra said. “We have a bunch of competitors, our guys will be ready, they’ll be ready. Then it’s a matter of also making an impact on the game and playing well. That has nothing to do with how I feel after a shoot-around. It’s the competition that brings it out.”

Kevin Love focuses on “correctable moments” for Miami 

The Heat’s veteran leadership will no doubt be huge as Kevin Love is going to be significant for the team as he looks to get more playing time rather than the 13 minutes he got in Game 1. He emphasized on the “correctable moments” Miami can take away from the game like how Boston ruled the three-point line, making 22 from that range which ties a playoff record for them.

“We went over a lot of film. So we feel like there’s a lot of correctable moments that we can take advantage of, obviously they beat us on the three-point line by a large margin,” Love said. “Felt like there was some times where we either over-helped or they got an offensive rebound, where they kicked it back out, swing swing plays and those are just backbreaking devastating plays for us. So I think if we limit some of our mistakes, some of our glitches, I give ourselves a better shot to steal this one.”

Wednesday night will be the opportune time for Miami to steal a game and possibly make this a competitive series. However, with how well the Celtics have been this season, the cards will be stacked against them, even though the Heat have prevailed before under those circumstances.