The Miami Heat lost an opening game of a playoff series for the first time this postseason, falling to the denver nuggets in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Miami cooled from the field, shooting just 33.3% from beyond the three-point line and 40.6% overall.
Miami Heat’s Bam Adebayo (13) sits on the court after Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic (15) sent him out of bounds during the fourth quarter of the Nuggets’ 104-93 victory in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. at Ball Arena in Denver on Thursday, June 1, 2023. (AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
But it was the lack of free kick attempts which raised questions after the game.
The Heat shot and made only two free throws, the fewest free throws ever made and attempted in a nba finals game.
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At the post-match press conference, Downtown Miami Bam Adebayo and forward Haywood Highsmith were asked three times about the lack of free-kick attempts, and Adebayo made sure to avoid any criticism of the referee.
«If I say something, will you accept the fine?» Adebayo said when asked about the free throw discrepancy. «I feel like we can’t even get into that. We can’t let them dictate the game. I feel like we took a lot of jump shots and missed a lot of them instead of going to the basket.»
«Let’s go watch the movie and go back to the drawing board.»
Haywood Highsmith #24 &erio; Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat speaks to the media after the game during Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Finals on June 1, 2023 at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. (Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)
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Denver went to the line 20 times in Game 1, knocking down 16 of the attempts.
Heat star Jimmy Butlerwho scored just 13 points on Thursday, said Miami has to be more aggressive to get to the rim.
«Probably because we took a lot of jump shots, me probably leading that group, rather than pressing the rim,» Butler said, according to ESPN. «Making layups, getting to the free throw line. When you look at it during the game, they all look like correct shots.
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Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler (22) takes the court against the Denver Nuggets before the first quarter of Game 1 of the NBA Finals at Ball Arena in Denver on Thursday, June 1, 2023. (AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
«And I’m not saying we can’t do that as a team, but we have to get more layups, get more free throws. And every time you miss and don’t come back, the game gets out of hand.» fast. We rendered too many trays, which can’t happen either. But that’s all as a whole. We have to attack the rim a lot more, including myself.»
Miami will have a chance to bounce back on Sunday with Game 2 scheduled for 8:00 pm ET.