The Lakers and the Heat both have veteran-led groups that turned in excellent defensive performances to take 2-1 series leads in the second round. LeBron James said that the Lakers are playing the way they envisioned, and they are hanging their hats on their defense. Lakers coach Darvin Ham said that the biggest thing for him is for them to come out with a mindset to just defend. Anthony Davis is a key player in the Lakers' defense, having blocked 37 shots in LA's nine playoff games while altering countless others and playing with the defensive fire of his best NBA seasons.
Meanwhile, Jimmy Butler is on a tear like only one other player in Heat playoff history, despite his right ankle being at less than 100%. He has scored at least 25 points in all seven of his appearances in this postseason, the second-longest such streak in Heat history, behind James's 15 games of at least 25 points on the way to his first championship in 2012. Butler has been shooting 56% so far in these playoffs, 60% from 2-point range. Although he acknowledges that he was "very, very dominant" in high school, he feels comfortable and confident in his current performance.
The Heat held the Knicks to just 34% shooting in Game 3, its second-worst effort of the season, and regressed from going 16 for 40 on 3s in Game 2 to 8 for 40 in Game 3. On the other hand, Miami didn’t exactly sizzle offensively in Game 3 either, shooting only 39% from the field and 22% from 3-point range. For the Knicks, Julius Randle needs to do more on the offensive end. Although he had a game-high 14 rebounds in Game 3, he shot only 4 of 15 from the field and missed all five of his 3-point tries. He is shooting just under 35% in this year’s playoffs and clearly needs to improve.
The Lakers face the Warriors, who they held under 100 points for only the fifth time all season in a 30-point blowout win. Miami hosts the Knicks and Los Angeles hosts the Warriors on Monday night with a chance to seize control of both series largely because they’ve been better defensively. Miami coach Erik Spoelstra wants his players to rest up, recover, and let their minds wander to other things, although they all understand the importance of the game on Monday. The Heat need to maintain their momentum, while the Lakers need to continue their excellent defense if they are to secure their places in the conference finals.
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