Spoelstra Key To Heat's Finals Run
MIAMI (CBSMiami.com) – When the Miami Heat take the floor at the AmericanAirlines Arena Tuesday night, they will be on the cusp of overcoming a season of ups and downs to play for an NBA championship. All the while, it's been the steady of hand of Erik Spoelstra guiding the team.
It was just over six months ago that the Heat had lost for the eighth time in 17 games and Heat star LeBron James bumped Spoelstra during a timeout. Many Heat fans were begging Heat president Pat Riley to come back and coach, but Spoelstra was never in any jeopardy.
Since the bump in the road, literally and figuratively, the Heat have the league's best record heading into the NBA Finals.
"The infamous 'Bumpgate,"' Spoelstra said. "That was a good starting moment for LeBron and I, just from the standpoint that we both realized, 'Hey, this is bizarre, the spotlight and the story lines that are developing with this team.' The two of us seemed to be a lightning rod for it. We understood we're in this together and the only way we'd all figure this out is if we got on the same page."
And it's not just Spoelstra who realized that the whole "bumpgate" signaled a change for both player and coach.
"I knew my communication with the head coach had to become better," James said. "Seventeen games into the season, it wasn't as great as it is now, of course. It's definitely grown. It should grow."
When the Heat lost in Dallas, a players-only meeting was called. James and Spoelstra sat down to learn more about each other and exchange ideas a couple of days later.
Since then, the Heat has run off a 61-19 record. And it would only be fitting if the Heat come full circle and knock off the Mavericks to finish off a journey that truly got started after a loss to the Mavericks.
And make no mistake about it, this is Erik Spoelstra's Miami Heat team.
"He's definitely put his stamp on it," Heat forward Udonis Haslem said. "I'm sure coach Riley has input here and there, but he runs this team and this ship the way he wants to run it. He takes input from the players as well, but ultimately he makes the final decisions. And we pretty much do things his way."
That way, may lead this group of Heat players all the way to the 2010-2011 NBA Championship.
(© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
