ESPN impressed by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s masterful clutch performance, Thunder beat Heat 107-100
Track will Mano and live post by Doug again started from our Valley Sports studios here Fort laille you just watched the game and saw much of what happened uh Mi me right in this game again couple things though clearly are going to stand out we’re going to talk
About over the next half hour so the second chance opportunities and the second night you told me yesterday as we were prepping or or today as we were prepping from you know about talking about yesterday’s game you hate playing these games where you have stars like
Luca and Shay and big moments you know they’re going to make shots like this and each night we saw a little of it yeah I mean it’s Elementary but total bummer the these are the types of games that as a player afterwards you go watch
The film and you go I thought I thought I was in rebounding position but I just didn’t hit or you know and and all those little plays add up and that’s what happens I thought Miami came out great I thought Jimmy Two assists short of a
Triple double on a second night of a back to back you held Oklahoma City almost under all their averages like you checked so many boxes it came down to just a couple little extra efforts and it’s unfortunate because it happened two nights in a row now for Miami where
These are tough games on the road and they put themselves in the position to win both of them yeah it’s it is strange too it’s one thing to lose two games it’s to lose both in eerily similar fashion with Second Chance opportunities those extra hustle plays and of course
The superstars making big shots let’s go to the third quarter where we’re going to start the Heat come out of the half they’re up 14 they’re feeling good and you knew a run would come Amy and you said it as we walked up the set at halftime look they’re going to make a
Run you just got to punch back this wasn’t just a run this was a just a a just what was it 7 St going get the whole team back into this game and so that’s unfortunate it’s it’s the runs and then it’s just listen they’re going
To go on you know couple ho but you got to be able to score a little bit it can’t be 140 run 170 run and that was tough actually exended a game subur that third quarter to your point I mean 30 is a big number but it’s not insurmountable
But as you reference when you only score 16 it certainly changes what was a close game and a Heat lead into a deficit into the fourth quarter so you know you got the turnovers you see there the six turnovers for the heat in that third quarter loan as Amy reference after five
In that first half my insurance attorney defensive plays at the game uh by the Thunder getting to the loose balls getting the getting the defense going I mean these these kind of plays just changing things course I’m not going to give the credit all to Oklahoma City I
Mean stepping out of bounds you just slip the ball slips out of your hands you’re kind of making a pass to nobody those are unforced like those are again Miami’s gonna watch this filmm and it’s frustrating because it’s St up and it cost you a game a big game on the
Road and you got the two superstars we referenced in the last 24 hours LCA last night Shay T night in similar fashion you know making shots and you sitting there you think you’re playing good defense and you’re not because they’re making shots you just kind of throw your
Hands up in the air but what was so impressive about SGA tonight when he got rolling that he just sort of started to take over this game he this is I think he’s going to be one of the best players in the league for a long time this is
Not a fluke I mean he is again nice double bam struggles just one of nine five points you get haime hakz JR Off the Bench giving you that type of production after Patty Mills gave you good production in the first half these are the kind of nights that I don’t want
To call a wasted effort because obviously it was great but when he plays like that you really you really want to finish off that game yeah and for haime when he comes off the bench it’s rebound stops when he has his hands on that ball
Go to the rim until someone we saw most of the first half of the season and it doesn’t like yes you were on the road you were playing one of the best teams in the league right now it doesn’t matter I thought he was so good tonight
And that’s going to have to continue doesn’t matter if it’s Washington it doesn’t matter who it is he’s got to do this he likes playing the Thunder that’s for sure has two games in his NBA career against him 21 back in January 25 tonight look at both nights very
Efficient three-point shooting as well in the rebounding H Hawkins Jr cly playing well enough for Miami to win tonight but unfortunately the heat fall in OKC 1071 100 yeah go on the limb that spos not too happy with what happened those Second Chance points in this lost
OKC here’s what the coach had to say competition and we’re going to work together until we get this breakthrough um you know these are painful moments uh you know we had an opportunity in both games um and you don’t know necessarily if if you can finish your defensive
Possessions you know with a rebound um whether you’re going to win or not um but that is our hurdle for this moment in time you know we we’ve rebounded great you know for the majority of the season for whatever reason this little pocket right now uh it’s um been
Troubling for us and you know the defensive efforts and disposition um you know is adequate I I was encouraged by uh the commitment to do hard things um against a very good offensive team um you know if we could have finished off a couple more uh possessions you we might
Have had an opportunity to hold them under a 100 um uh and that’s not easy in today’s game and the way they uh drive and attack and uh the skill level um and they also can keep you honest at the three-point line um I thought the attention to detail um the physicality
The force um and the efforts were there uh it just was very similar you know down the stretch uh looked like we had opportunities you know to secure the ball but um weren’t able to do it and you have to get them credit and they also knocked down shots after that it
Almost looked like misprint you know we basically had the same amount of offensive rebounds uh we end up with less than 10 points off of those offensive rebounds they have 23 I had to look at it you know three or four times but um but my gut felt like it was 30 uh
Off those nine offensive rebounds so we’ll get better from this um you know there were a lot of good things to take away none of us want to talk about it or feel that or uh you know um whatever you know right now because we’re competitors
But by the time we get back to Miami uh even the head coach you know can see that there are some good things you know happening in our locker room how hardening was it for Hae to step up and sort of fill in when maybe others were
Struggling yeah we really needed it you know because we we uh put a lot into the game physically and emotionally last night uh and that’s not an excuse at all like our guys were ready to compete and and put it out there tonight uh but you
Know there wasn’t a lot of juice you know you know throughout the rotation but highe um you know was able to give us a lot of relief points and also during key moments of the game we could throw the ball to them kind of settled in uh in a
Similar way that we were doing you know we what we do with uh Jimmy um and that allowed us to catch our breath get to spacing and play out of you know their aggressive uh defense and it also you know says a lot about his his mental
Toughness you know to be able to have that kind of performance on on the second night of a back toback and your thoughts on Patty Mills heat debut yeah was great to see him uh finally do it in a heat uniform instead of against us um
We’ve seen that for too many years um you can see you know why he’s been able to do what he does he’s ignitable he’s smart he’s been in a lot of a very good system so he knows how to fit in even though he hasn’t had a practice uh 15
Years uh in it’s all the same kind of stuff he can play his game he helps our best players uh he was able to to really help that that unit we had in with Jimmy and Nico and um that’s something that uh you know will definitely add to our
Depth and filled out the rest of the box score was off with his shot was that something they were doing is he in a little bit of a funk right now based on last night and tonight offensively you know sometimes these things happen but he’s a competitor he knows how to to
Impact you know the game and they’re committed you know to take the ball out of his hands uh you know particularly out of the post um and on the pick and rolls they’re switching so we couldn’t necessarily get him the ball in his sweet spots uh so he wasn’t able to get
Some easy relief points and um you know but he did a lot of good things and and that’s why you know it’s these are great opportunities to to win a game on the road with your C game you know if we’re not at at your best you
Know that that you can still find a way to win we weren’t able to do that tonight and so we we live with a loss all right thank you [Applause] spe To m You for [Applause] for [Applause] I one fore spee spee foreign speech for Speee Spee foreign Spee For For Not for
ESPN impressed by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s masterful clutch performance, Thunder beat Heat 107-100
